


The Prequel Trilogy Reborn

by LeoCharlesM



Category: Star Wars, Star Wars Prequel Trilogy
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-21
Updated: 2020-05-24
Packaged: 2021-03-03 01:21:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 25,568
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24306595
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LeoCharlesM/pseuds/LeoCharlesM
Summary: The Prequel Trilogy has always been a disappointment to me as a longtime fan of the GFFA. For all its iconic characters and bold plot choices, the PT is a jumble of messy storytelling and world building inconsistencies that most of us never expected out of George Lucas. I mean, he really made the Jedi lead an army of stormtroopers, had little Orphan Ani murder innocent children, and had Padmé die of a lack of will to live... come on, bro.I could go on and on and on about my problems with the ways the PT fails to mesh with the OT or the periphery material available at the time... but rather than that, I decided to do it myself. So I took cues from the PT as if GL's work was just a rough draft and made a whole new saga. I call it the Prequels Reborn.I hope you enjoy, feel free to tell me what you think about it, and MTFBWYA
Comments: 2
Kudos: 7





	1. The Phantom Menace Reborn

A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away…

_prologue_

The first thing we see is the Slave One drop into realspace. Jango Fett is piloting and pulls up to dock with a dreadnought. He disembarks to enter the _Silver Sailor_ , an extravagant capital cruiser owned by the mysterious Lord Tyranus. It’s decked out in luxurious rugs, chandeliers and rare artifacts and technologies from all over the galaxy and beyond.

Then Tyranus appears, dressed like a royal, with a clean shaved face and bright yellow eyes. He shares a drink with Jango, who removes his helmet to join in the fun. Tyranus explains that he will pay Jango double his fee for the next ten years, up-front — and that by the end of his tenure he will be the galaxy’s most famous, and most wealthy, bounty hunter.

Fett smiles and asks what the catch would be. Tyranus finishes his drink and calls for food, then asks Jango how much he knows about the cloners on Kamino.

_end of prologue_

# — STAR WARS —

> Democracy is in danger! For 30,000 years The Republic has guaranteed freedom and representation to thousands of systems across the galaxy. After many ages of expansion, the Jedi Order, the guardians of peace and justice, have reached their breaking point.
> 
> Enemies abound as corrupt senators endlessly squabble and debate, while the galaxy begs for relief. When the Outer Rim system of Naboo, comes under blockade by the greedy Czerka Corporation, a desperate senator dispatches a pair of Jedi in secret, to settle the conflict…

A white and silver Corellian Corevette careens through the blur of hyperspace. The vessel is crewed by Jedi Reserves who are joined by Jedi Knight Qui-Gon Jinn and his Padawan, Obi-Wan Kenobi, on the bridge. Obi-Wan asks his master why they aren’t at the head of a Republic Fleet, sailing off to liberate an entrenched member world. Qui-Gon says there are more answers to that question than could be counted, but for now there are only two that matter. One: there is not enough public information on the crisis to warrant a majority interest in the gargantuan Republic Senate. Two: Qui-Gon says with absolute certainty that a modern Jedi should never go into a war. The Force will always provide a better path.

As Obi-Wan contemplates the meaning of his master’s words, the ship receives a hail from Coruscant. Grandmaster Mace Windu is on the other end of the call, the Council has received intel that there is to be an assassination attempt on the Queen. Qui-Gon’s mission has been changed. They must now sneak through the blockade, into the palace to protect and retrieve the queen at any cost. Before ending the transmission he instructs the crew of _The Shatterpoint_ that they are transmitting a series of nav-points that ought to break the Czerka blockade, and of course, MTFBWY.

Obi-Wan expresses doubts about data on a blockade that was supposed to be a secret, but Qui-Gon does not respond. He is contemplative when his padawan gets anxious, testing Obi-Wan’s patience (and loyalty). Nevertheless the data, or the Force, guides them true and they reach the outskirts of Theed Palace without incident. Obi-Wan thinks they will immediately raise the alarm and call Naboo security forces, but Qui-Gon urges patience.

The Jedi walk through the capital and find a pair of Gungans in shadowed gear to hide their weapons. Qui-Gon explains that Gungans are not welcome in Nabooian society, so they usually avoid the cities, and the capital especially. The Gungans duck into a series of alleys and through a secret entrance in the palace waste facility. They are met by their leader, a figure who stays completely cloaked as they sneak through the castle up to the royal apartments.

When they finish slicing the lock to the throne room, Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan ambush them. The Gungans fight to the death, but their leader is subdued. They unmask him and find he’s a red-face, golden eyed Kaleesh, whose lungs were badly wounded in the scuffle. Qui-Gon quickly summons the Force to sustain the dying being, while Obi-Wan asks who sent him. The assassin says he was hired by a Sith lord and that more would be coming. It would not end with him, this was only the beginning.

Qui-Gon is uncharacteristically unsettled by all this and demands the Kaleesh say more about the Sith, but the queen and her security forces descend upon them all and take her would-be assassin into custody. Queen Amidala and her handmaidens, along with Captain Panaka, welcome the Jedi then call an emergency council.

Before the holo-images of the rulers of Naboo and the queen on her throne, Qui-Gon explains that the Jedi Council believes that she is no longer safe on her homeworld. The combined threat of a looming Czerka invasion, and a possible Sith assassination plot, is too much to ignore. She must return with the Jedi to Coruscant where she can be safe and aid in swaying the senate into action.

Though all in the council appear to have a negative reaction to Qui-Gon’s advice, none dare speak out against a Jedi Knight. None, but the queen herself. She dismisses her councilors whose holo-images disappear, then rises from her throne. Amidala is the youngest person to ever be elected ruler of the Naboo, and she’s had the job for less than a year. She is not blind, she knows this siege is a setup — someone thinks she’s weak. If she runs from Czerka Corp, then that means they are right about her.

Qui-Gon considers her words, and Obi-Wan is impressed. They strike a bargain to meet in the middle. Naboo needs to defend itself from invasion, but the Queen needs to leave the system safely. So the Jedi use their ship’s comm systems to help Captain Panaka assemble a Nabooian strike force. And, as the Naboo fighter squadrons fly off toward the atmosphere, the queen’s personal shuttle leads the charge.

Just before the Naboo forces reach the Czerka capital cruiser that orbits Theed, Queen Amidala transmits a message across the sector’s Holonet. In it she gives a quick, impassioned speech declaring war eternal on the Czerka slavers. She would rather die today in glorious battle than live a full, peaceful life in slavery.

The battle is distracting enough for the Jedi to escape the system without ever interacting with the Czerka forces. _The Shatterpoint_ spools up it’s hyperdrive and is about to leap into hyperspace when a Gungan battleship opens fire on them. They hail the Corvette and explain that they are the Kaleesh’s crew, and they must complete their master’s mission or die trying. Obi-Wan and the rest of the crew are very willing to oblige, but Qui-Gon reminds them there is another way.

So they drop a series of ion charges behind them which disable their attackers, then leap into hyperspace. As the black of space turns to swirls of white and blue, the captain of the ship turns to explain to Qui-Gon that they do not have the power to make it back to the Core. They’ve charted a course to a nearby backwater which should offer shelter — maybe even parts — so they can make repairs. Qui-Gon nods and thanks him for his effort, while Queen Amidala and four of her handmaidens look on with judgement and doubt in their features.

…

Lord Tyranus’ Dreadnought drops out of hyperspace above the system of Oba Diah. He gets into his shuttle and flies down to the Pyke Palace to me with Lom Pyke. Tyranus and four of his assassin droids enter the palace to find the Pyke Syndicate is holding a badly wounded Jedi Master Sifo-Dyas, prisoner. When the wounded Jedi espies Tyranus, he smiles, happy to finally see a friendly face. Tyranus calls him, “my old master” then hands over a set of codes to his captors.

The Pykes release Sifo-Dyas and two of the assassin droids carry the wounded Jedi out of his prison. Tyranus assures Lom that the new Sith Empire will restore his syndicate’s monopoly on the Kessel Spice trade. Hearing these words concerns Dyas but he’s too weak to resist the droids carrying him.

When he finishes with the Pykes, Tyranus approaches Sifo-Dyas and shows him that the Pykes handed over the old master’s lightsaber and holocron. The hilt of the blade is three hands long, but the last hand curves in a way that hugs the wielder’s palm. Tyranus clearly likes it. Sifo-Dyas calls him Dooku, and asks why such a great Jedi Knight would ever pretend to ally with the Sith. Tyranus says that name no longer means anything to him.

He activates his old master’s lightsaber, then rams it through the man’s heart. The dark blue blade turns purple, and even starts to change into a red hue before Tyranus deactivates it. As the Jedi Master falls to the ground dead, Tyranus regards the holocron in his hand lustfully, then returns to his shuttle and leaves Oba Diah behind.

…

We return to _The Shatterpoint_ which shudders violently as it drops out of hyperspace. An overwhelmed R2-D2 screams his discontent at the many repair tasks he’s been stuck with. Klaxons blare and fires rage as the Corvette begins to drop into a world’s atmosphere spinning out of control. The Jedi are concerned enough that they step in to helm the ship’s descent, but even that may not prove to be enough.

The ship’s captain broadcasts a distress call on all Republic frequencies. He identifies himself as Raymus Antilles, and calls for any Republic or Jedi allies to assist them as they crash land on a planet known as Tatooine. When things look bleak, they receive a transmission from a man who calls himself Skywalker.

Then an Incom T-8x Cloudrider (larger, heavier predecessor to the T-16 Skyhopper) zooms into view and matches speed with the falling Corvette. The T-8x snares _The Shatterpoint_ in its tractor beam, then drags it out of freefall. Together, the two ships swing through a death-defying trench called Beggar’s Canyon, to finally land in a sandy, timeworn hangar bay. The Jedi are pleased to be rescued, but the queen is livid.

She believes she made a mistake leaving Naboo and trusting the Jedi. She blames them for not anticipating that the Kaleesh assassin would have a contingency plan, and laments that Tatooine is further from Coruscant than even Naboo. Obi-Wan attempts to engage her in debate but is quickly subdued by her righteous anger. Qui-Gon only cautions that they be patient and trust the Force, as ever.

As the ships touch down in the hangar bay, a cheesy advertisement plays over the ship’s console. It’s a local-access video commercial for a company called “Skywalker & Son — Reckin’ and Repair.” At the end a handsome young man introduces himself as Anakin Skywalker, instructing people to come see why Skywalker is the most trusted name in the Outer Rim for salvage, repairs and exotic upgrades. This appears to be the last straw for Queen Amidala, who storms off to her quarters with her handmaidens.

The Jedi and their crew exit the ship to meet with Anakin Skywalker himself. He is only about eighteen or nineteen years old, but carries himself like a man twice his age. He seems unimpressed with the Jedi, even suspicious of them, but more than willing to do fair work for fair-pay. Qui-Gon guarantees him that and more if he can get _The Shatterpoint_ back in space as soon as possible, so they have a deal.

Captain Antilles asks Anakin how he was there in the nick of time to save them. Anakin tells him that his mother was an old Republic loyalist before her passing and he’d picked up the habit of monitoring their frequencies in slow seasons. It was good for business for him when he worked with loyalists, and this was a perfect example.

Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan intend to keep Queen Amidala’s presence on Tatooine a secret, but when a Rodian nanny comes out with a baby human in her arms, Amidala and the handmaidens come running down the gangplank to see. Anakin introduces them all to his son, baby Anakin. The women are instantly smitten by the beautiful baby boy, so it appears the Jedi have dodged a bullet for now.

The handmaidens introduce themselves to both Anakins. Eirtaé, Padmé, and Rabé are native Nabooians, well-trained infiltrators and hand-to-hand combat specialists. Cordé is a code slicer from Nubia, and an expert linguist. Sabé is the queen’s closest advisor and childhood friend, and Berilé is a crack pilot and mechanical whiz. They are careful not to reveal everything about their identities, but very quickly come to like the Skywalkers.

Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan are impressed with the young man as well. He has a successful business for someone his age, and is an attentive father. Qui-Gon is most impressed by how focused he’s remained since the recent loss of his wife, Anakin’s mother. She died in childbirth and the Skywalker boys have been on their own ever since.

At the end of the day, Anakin goes into town to drink at the local cantina while the Jedi go through training exercises, and the handmaidens play with baby Anakin and run through their own drills.

Anakin Sr. is smart and helpful so he comes off as caring and engaging. He is a proud man, very willing to gush about any number of his favorite things: the shop, his ship, his fleet of swoop bikes, or baby Anakin. Also, Anakin is capable with the Force, but actively downplays its importance to him. He uses the Force like practical magic, opening panels, lifting objects or catching things dropped by accident.

Obi-Wan is both impressed and horrified. He’s a strict traditionalist, it had never even occurred to him that there were beings who could wield the Force with such control, outside the Order. Anakin is happy to show the Jedi that the Outer Rim has a network of Force-adepts who train each other called The Guild. Rather than masters and apprentices, each Guild member shares what they know about their powers with the community, helping each other learn and grow.

Qui-Gon is inspired and really opens up to the boy. He says Anakin utilizes the Force as if it’s his third arm, or an extra leg. He’s not at harmony with the Force like a Jedi, but rather seems to live in symbiosis with it — as if the Force were a parasite he’s learned to feed in exchange for the ability to lift a thousand pound engine with his bare hands…

It is at this point that Qui-Gon asks for more information about Ankain’s mother and his past. Anakin does not know much, but he’s forthright. He tells them that he never knew his father, and his mother died when he was young, so he had to learn how to survive. He does not remember his homeworld, but his mother mentioned that they fled a religious war of some sort, and moved to Tatooine as refugees. Qui-Gon is unsettled by the story.

It does not take long before Padmé is on the warpath again. She believes they are wasting time. The Jedi could commandeer a vessel and get them into space with ease, yet their plan is to wait for repairs. Qui-Gon seems willing to let her have her outburst, but Obi-Wan can’t help himself. He tries to convince her that acting in haste — even for a good reason — is still service to the dark side. She counters by intimating that the corruption in the Republic that made the blockade on Naboo possible, must also be running through the Jedi Order.

Anakin steps in at this point to play peacekeeper. He remarks to the elder Obi-Wan that there is a subtle art to talking to women that he suspects the Jedi don’t address in their training. Obi-Wan responds that he’s just happy he doesn’t have to ever worry about getting emotionally entangled with such complicated creatures. It’s an indelicate remark that he immediately regrets making to the young widower, but Anakin seems to take it in stride.

That evening, Anakin offers to take them all out for a drink, but the Jedi decline, preferring their training time in the desert at night. All the handmaidens join him but Cordé, who says she’ll stay with the baby for the night. The girls have the most fun many of them have ever had — most of them have never gotten to drink, or go to a bar, or play party games in their adult lives.

The Jedi spend the evening practicing their saber forms and discussing the importance of remaining in the living Force. Battle Meditation requires a Jedi to be fully present, full engaged in the moment, to properly feel the flow of the Force. The Force flows through a Jedi and guides him. They discuss the greater meanings of the Jedi teachings around a meager campfire, and watch the flames crackle and spark into the night sky.

…

The crackling of a campfire returns us to a very different world. An unfamiliar Jedi Knight and his padawan are sitting around a fire in a dense forest. The elder is just finishing filing a transmission report with his holocommunicator. The padawan asks why he must report to the Council every day, even on days when nothing’s happened. The master teaches him about doing his duty, no matter its perceived value, or how tedious it may be.

Then, to lighten the moment, the Jedi tells him the Council is acutely aware of how much a hazard it is to be his master. The padawan appreciates the barb, but eventually the master returns to the matter at hand. He explains that a hunt — like the one they’re on — is good for testing any number of his abilities, but none so important as his attention to detail. Filing reports is just one of those essential details.

Suddenly he looks alerted, as though he heard something unnatural moving through the woods. Panic creeps in and infects his padawan. The Jedi activates his yellow lightsaber, and whispers that they need to get back to the ship. A menacing, echoing laugh haunts their tiny campsite. The louder it grows, the dimmer their campfire gets till it’s extinguished altogether.

Run — the master cries, but it’s too late as a beam of horrible red light cuts them down, master and apprentice. Then their attacker retrieves their lightsabers before activating a communicator in his palm. Darth Maul lowers his cowl and bows his head when the call is accepted. He tells his master that he has completed his mission.

The voice on the other end is angry and disappointed. He took too long to complete his work, his master thought he was dead and had continued his plans without him. Maul remains stoic, as his training has taught him, and asks what his master’s bidding is. His master tells him about the failed assassination attempt on Queen Amidala, and the captured Kaleesh imprisoned in the palace.

His master tells him that he sends him against the Jedi who will be his doom. But if he is able to complete his mission, he shall have earned a place in the world that is to come. Either way, Maul’s life or death, shall please him. Maul turns off the communicator, then retrieves the dead Jedi’s holocron, and heads off into the forest.

…

We return to the outskirts of Mos Espa, looking down on the Skywalker Reckin & Repair shop through a pair of electrobinoculars. It’s night time and though most of the shop is dark, there is a clear view through a window to the main house above the hangar. In the window paces Cordé with a sleeping baby Anakin in her arms. She’s singing to him and dancing in circles.

A Gungan says that it must be her. He is sure of it, the three others cannot argue. One complains that there is a baby, and it is innocent. The leader quickly reminds him they have no other choice. And how many dead baby Gungans can be placed at the feet of the Naboo Queen? How many more will? It is uneasy, but there is no questioning him.

They assemble a shoulder mounted booma launcher, and then fire a massive projectile that decimates the hangar apartment. It’s instantly incinerated and the plasma eats through the surrounding buildings like an electric-blue lava. The Gungans are horrified but their leader keeps them focused, and they run off together into the night.

Cordé and baby Anakin were killed instantly. Anakin Sr. returns to the scene and is utterly devastated. Padmé and the handmaidens are distraught and the Jedi arrive to chaos. After securing the area, Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon take swoop bikes in search of the assassins. While they are away, Padmé, Sabé and Anakin commiserate together. They decide they’ve waited for the Jedi to fix things for long enough, and convince the grieving Anakin that it’s time they take matters in their own hands.

They, along with the crew of _The Shatterpoint_ , load up Anakin’s ship with everything they can get their hands on and head off to get revenge. Anakin is in shock but could pilot his ship in his sleep. He calls in some favors from local law enforcement to find out that an unregistered gunship recently landed a few clicks outside town, and they make for the landing site.

When Anakin and the handmaidens reach the Gungan ship it’s in ruins. Something destroyed the vessel and as they circle the wreckage overhead they can see a pair of lightsaber blades dance and sway as though they’re in combat. It’s hard to see clearly, but one blade is blue, the other appears yellow but is so obscured by smoke and the light that it is impossible to be sure.

Finally he finds a place to land and they disembark warily. It takes a while but they find Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon, who are just as wary about finding them there. The Gungans are dead and burnt beyond recognition. It’s a horrible sight and it does nothing to ease anyone’s pain. However, the scene renews Padmé’s faith in the Jedi and their commitment to justice, so she’s pleased to keep Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan by her side.

When they all return to Anakin’s ship, no one much feels like talking, but it is clear what will happen next when Anakin asks if there’s a place for him on Coruscant. Padmé and the Jedi assure him that there is, so they take off and leap into hyperspace, leaving Tatooine behind for good.

…

The scene opens with Dooku leaving his brother on Serenno after a conversation that clearly did not go his brother’s way. Dooku reminds him that the family’s holdings are his to do with as he chooses, then reminds his brother that his place is to do as his Count commands. He then returns to his dreadnought and hyperspaces to far-off Dantooine, where he meets with none other than Yoda.

Yoda has been living on Dantooine for years as he studies relics from the ancient Massassi who once lived there. He hypothesizes to Dooku that the Prime Jedi was one of their race, but as yet does not have a way to prove it. Yoda asks his padawan why he has come. Dooku asks if anyone can resist destiny. Run from it, fight it, hide from it, change it — anything?

Yoda is patently evasive but does try to encourage Dooku that it’s never too late to make a change for the better. Powerlessness is just a matter of perception, a lesson his master, Sifo-Dyas, knew quite well before his untimely death. Yoda’s evocation of Dooku’s old master unsettles him, but he tries very hard to appear unmoved.

Dooku reveals that there is a path before him that he knows Yoda would not approve of, but he wants his blessing nonetheless. Yoda obviously denies him, and Dooku appears unshaken. He retrieves a little wooden puzzle box from amongst Yoda’s treasures and trinkets. If one operates its levers incorrectly, little pinpricks jump out to stab your fingers and palms. The familiar sensation brings a smile to Dooku’s lips.

Instead, Dooku asks, could he take the little toy with him, in lieu of Yoda’s validation. Yoda cannot deny one of his old students but reminds him that there is no Force without the Light. Dooku only says there is so much more to the universe than darkness and light, then turns to go.

…

Then we see Anakin’s Cloudrider take off in the Tatooine night sky and look down to see Maul and his new apprentice hiding in the dark recesses of a cave near the wrecked Gungan ship. Maul refers to his apprentice as the Wounded. He moves around with the aid of a mechanical exosuit, and the sound of his difficult, painful breathing is ever-present. When the coast is clear, they come out of hiding and reveal that the Wounded is the Kaleesh. Darth Maul hands his apprentice the stolen Jedi Knight’s lightsaber, which he places on his belt beside the padawan’s, then commands him to follow.

Maul and his apprentice return to Anakin’s destroyed shop, and Maul uses all his powers as a Sith and a hunter to divine that the assassins did not kill Amidala. He calls his master and informs him that the Gungans have been killed for their failure and the queen is most likely on her way to Coruscant right now. They receive no immediate reply which agitates the Wounded, but Darth Maul knows better. He says they must prepare for whatever death the Force has in store for them.

…

On the flight to Coruscant, Obi-Wan shows Anakin some of the principles of Jedi Meditation, as Qui-Gon looks on. He does not interfere, but there is a darkness in his eyes that’s unmistakable. Something is on his mind, something is changing within him, but he’s not willing to speak it into life, not yet.

Their arrival on Coruscant is secretive and conducted by a squad of Senate Guards, assisted by the Jedi Sentinels with their white long-pike sabers. As soon as they are safe within the Senate grounds, Queen Amidala and her handmaidens, along with Panaka and R2-D2, are swept away by Nabooian Senator Sheev Palpatine and his retinue. Anakin is not surprised in the least bit to hear that one of them was a queen that whole time, he’s more surprised to hear that the rest aren’t.

The Nabooian delegation meets with Grand Chancellor Valorum who shows lots of affection for Amidala. He gifts her a gold plated protocol droid designated C-3PO, who immediately takes kindly to R2-D2. As they move on to the underbelly of the capital of the Republic, Anakin and the Jedi, along with the crew of _The Shatterpoint_ , make for the Temple.

They bring their story to the High Council who immediately offer Anakin lodging for as long as he should want it. The Council is concerned to hear that a Sith might have hired the Kaleesh assassin, explaining that it has been over a millennia since the last time Dark Jedi threatened the Republic. Anakin says he would like to enter the Temple as an adept and earn a rank within the Order. Obi-Wan likes the idea and speaks on his behalf, but Qui-Gon silences him. Grandmaster Windu plays it cool by saying Anakin is too old and has an unclear blood-line, but the moment is tense and uncomfortable.

For their short stay on Coruscant, Anakin and Obi-Wan go over basic lessons in Force powers and compare notes. Anakin is a novice but soaks it all in. He also spends a lot of his time in the hangar, working on his ship alongside the Order Reserves technicians and mechanics, like R2-D2. He and the astromech become friends when Anakin realizes that Artoo can slave any droid in the area to do whatever he wants. Anakin even offers to help Artoo with some upgrades he has in mind.

The one thing Anakin can’t seem to find any success in, is getting an opportunity to see Sabé or Padmé and the rest of the women from Naboo. They are kept under lock and key by Palpatine and the Senate Guard. Qui-Gon explains that this is because keeping Queen Amidala’s presence on Coruscant a secret is a huge advantage they have on Czerka and any other enemies targeting her. What’s more, the invasion of Naboo has already begun and who knows how the resistance will hold up if they find out their Queen is no longer on her throne.

As if he were tempting fate, Qui-Gon and the rest watch on a holoscreen as Senator Palpatine introduces Queen Amidala to an emergency session of congress, to speak on his behalf. She gives a dry, cold, calculated speech threatening both Czerka and any other corporate entity that would undermine democracy across the galaxy. She shames the senate for its inaction, denounces the chancellor for allowing her world to languish while they lazily debate. Then issues a challenge: every Republic world who votes against the war resolution can expect to see Naboo cannons pointed at them after she’s through with Czerka Corp.

Palpatine moves for a vote to declare war on Czerka Corp., which earns a raucous chorus from the massive senate chamber. He shouts that he will resign his position if this democratic body cannot be forced to act in a time of crisis.

It is a bad turn of fortune for the Jedi who see once and for all that Queen Amidala will not be controlled. The Jedi Council does not want to be caught unawares again, so they immediately dispatch six Jedi to embed themselves within the Naboo resistance. Master Windu charges Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan with personally guarding Queen Amidala, who surely will try to return home soon enough. In the meantime, the Council must track down the mole who compromised their mission in the first place, selling them out to the Kaleesh and his crew.

This is where Anakin finds a way to interject. He offers to continue to act as the pilot for Amidala and Qui-Gon, since his ship is off of Republic logs and therefore can’t be tracked by anyone, mole or no. The Council is hesitant to send Anakin back into conflict again after the loss he’s recently suffered, but they cannot deny the wisdom of his plan. Thus, Anakin figures out a way to see Padmé and the girls once more, and remain by Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon’s side.

…

The beginning of the next scene is split in half. One half, we silently observe Darth Maul and the Wounded training under the suns baking the Tatooine desert. The other half, shows a guilt-ridden Qui-Gon Jinn refusing to leave the Council Chambers as Anakin and Obi-Wan depart to prepare for their return to Naboo. Silently he informs the Council of what plagues his mind and heart. Slowly the sounds of battle come to the forefront as Qui Gon speaks: the whir of a lightsaber, the cry of the Wounded as he falters, the cruel laugh of Maul who delights in his apprentice’s pain… Then at last we hear Qui-Gon pronounce that fate demands the Council never allow the boy to be trained, adding that he’ll die before he sees Anakin make another sacrifice. He bows and exits.

Maul strikes down his apprentice who languishes in pain on the hot ground. He takes hacking, desperate breaths that force him to cough more often than not. Though his spirit yields to Maul’s superior abilities and strength, the exo-suit has other plans. It lifts him to his feet and forces the Wounded to engage in another round of training. It is torture and Maul feeds off of the pain.

Maul is finally hailed by the dark, mysterious voice of his master. He commands Maul to return to Naboo, this time he must die trying to kill the queen. The Wounded cries out in terror. He slumps forward but the exo-suit refuses to let him fall to his knees. Maul does not blink or falter. He says yes my master, and closes the transmission.

The Wounded begs him for some other way out. Maul calls him a pathetic fool. This was not the first time his master commanded him to die, nor would it be the last. He would kill everyone who got in his way and ensure his place in the new galaxy. A Sith galaxy.

Maul and the Wounded get on the Scimitar (Sith Infiltrator) and blast off of Tatooine. As they enter hyperspace, Maul tells his apprentice to power down and he does so on the spot. The Wounded has a fitful, horrible dream. In it, a figure robed in black is cackling as he uses the Force and a pair of med droids to fuse an exo-suit to his broken body. Lightning crackles all around and smoke clouds everything but the pain. The Wounded awakes with a horrible scream, but Maul only laughs.

…

On Naboo again and Anakin can’t ever seem to corner Sabé and Padmé at the same time. The Nabooian resistance leaders are gathering in the forbidden forest. They’ve conducted a guerrilla war against the invading Czerka since Amidala’s Flight (the first battle over Theed). The ranks of the coalition are made up of Nabooians from all walks of life, but the native Gungan population makes up the most significant part. The Gungans, led by their chieftain Boss Rugor Nass, were moved by Amidala’s fight for freedom and certainly saved Naboo from being overthrown immediately.

Amidala goes into shock — her own racism was inflamed when the assassins killed Cordé and baby Anakin, but her world would be lost without the Gungans. Instead of hopeless wreckage, the resistance has platoons of warriors, squadrons of fighters and more than enough infrastructure to launch and sustain a campaign. Panaka and the handmaidens are invigorated to be amongst their compatriots again and Qui-Gon, Obi-Wan and Anakin meet with the other Jedi deployed to Naboo.

That evening they conceive a battle plan to retake Naboo and force Czerka Corp to surrender. The meeting is led by Jedi Master Plo Koon, a Kel Dor serving as Champion of the Order for the past decade. He has their forces split into a three-pronged attack: the main force will assault Theed to draw the Czerka droid army into the low country, a splinter group will attack the palace in secret to capture the droid control codes, and an aerial assault on the control ship orbiting Theed. If all goes according to plan, at the end of the fighting all the Czerka droids on Naboo will either be deactivated or fighting for the queen.

Boss Nass offers up the opinion that there will be many casualties in a plan like this which silences everyone. He’s a massive being and carries himself with a presence that the Jedi recognize as a Force-trait. As he steps forward he intimates that their guerrilla resistance is working and will only get better with Jedi aid. Plo Koon nods and says if that is their will then the Jedi will serve it, but then turns to Queen Amidala for a cue. She does not speak.

Captain Panaka speaks instead — he says that Czerka will only get more brutal and oppressive, especially now that they can’t use propaganda to convince people that Queen Amidala is dead. The longer they wait, the harder the hammer will fall, and it will fall. Czerka Corp is too big, too powerful, to be denied by anything other than an equal show of force.

Boss Nass pounds his chest and says his people have enough heart to match any slavers from the stars. Let them come, he declares, we shall outlast them — and seems to be swaying the gathered leadership. Amidala looks timid, tenuous, even Anakin thinks it’s odd she’s remained silent. Then a handmaiden that Anakin could have sworn was Sabé, steps into the center and unveils herself. It’s Padmé and she explains that the woman dressed as the queen is not truly the queen, but her handmaiden and loyal bodyguard.

Queen Padmé speaks directly to Boss Nass, she tells him about her flight from Naboo and Tatooine, how she trusts only her handmaidens to know her true identity, but now she trusts him as well. She left her world behind at the dawn of a crisis and returned to find it in the steadiest, firmest of hands. She promises a life debt to him and his people. The Gungans will henceforth be recognized as equal participants in Nabooian and Republic society. They will have a representative in the Galactic Senate and once the Czerka scourge have been removed from Naboo, Amidala shall name Boss Nass her Vice Regent.

It is because she believes in him so much that he must trust her when she says they should act now. If they do not expel Czerka, then Naboo could become a protracted siege world for the indefinite future. They would lose everything while Czerka Corp and the Republic use them as an example of military might. Naboo would be collateral damage in a galactic negotiation between democratic and corporate powers.

She will not allow that to happen — Boss Nass agrees and the plan is set.

…

As the resistance prepare their forces for battle, we get to see Tyranus leaving Dantooine behind. He makes a long-distance transmission into a hand communicator. In the call he identifies himself as Jedi Master Sifo-Dyas. He says that his preparation is complete, it is time for him to begin their endgame. The galaxy will need to be protected… then he closes the transmission and begins to do that trademarked sinister Sith laugh. He’s staring at Yoda’s puzzle box as he cackles, then the shuttle plots a course to Kamino, releases it’s solar sails and leaps into hyperspace.

Anakin, Sabé and Padmé have a little sit down together that evening by a campfire. Anakin says even he was surprised by all that, and he knew she was the queen the whole time. They roll their eyes at him. Sabé says she thinks she even tricked Master Plo Koon, but he’s never going to admit it. The more they drink the more stated Sabé’s romantic interest in Anakin becomes, but eventually she leaves and Padmé takes Anakin into her tent that night.

The Jedi are having a little fireside chat themselves, but absent from the meeting are Qui-Gon and Plo Koon who can be heard in the near distance arguing. Their voices are raised and verging on angry; the name ‘Anakin’ occurs more than once. One of the Jedi Knights asks Obi-Wan if he knows what the deal is. Obi says his master is mysterious and brilliant in equal measure. The Knights chuckle and say not that, what’s the deal with Anakin. That’s another question Obi-Wan can’t really answer, but he takes a big gulp and tries.

We flashback to Tatooine, when Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan were riding through the desert at night, trying to track down the Gungan assassins. They were following a good trail but something evil and menacing was getting in the way. It was the Dark Side, some phantom menace they could not place but both of them felt it clouding everything. Eventually they found the wreckage of the ship and it was terrible. Anakin must have used his latent powers — and his ship’s upgraded cannons — to track down and decimate the assassins before the Jedi could bring them to justice.

Obi-Wan cannot be sure, but he suspects that is what’s been troubling Qui-Gon ever since — that in his grief Anakin was able to turn the Force into such darkness and destruction.

…

It’s just before sunup on Naboo when the resistance mobilizes for war. Plo Koon tracks down Anakin and tells him that he’ll be his wingman in the battle over Theed. Anakin looks concerned, as though he wants to protest, but the Jedi Master waves him off. He says Anakin is supposed to be a great pilot, well, only great pilots can stay on Plo Koon’s wing. That pinprick to his pride is enough to get Anakin ready and willing.

Two of the Jedi will accompany Boss Nass in battle, another will join Anakin and Plo Koon in the fighter squadrons, the final two will join Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon as they sneak into the palace with Queen Amidala. The Jedi all practice their saber forms and meditate together before splitting up for battle. Before Anakin finishes saying goodbye to his friends, he mentions in passing that he didn’t know Jedi could change the colors of their lightsabers.

Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon are confused, so he explains that he thought they had a blue and a yellow blade back on Tatooine. He even asks Sabé and Padmé to confirm but they can’t agree on whether it was yellow or green. This is a surprise to Obi-Wan who says they never activated their blades on Tatooine. Padmé says this misunderstanding isn’t the conversation that matters right now. Obi-Wan is clearly unsettled. He asks Qui-Gon what it all means, but his master is distracted and evasive as ever.

…

The ground battle is against heavily armed droids that look like protocol droids with guns in both hands and an additional over the shoulder cannon. Czerka Corp have artillery and tanks, as well as swoop-rider cavalry. The Gungans have ray shields, enough booma to wipe out a dozen droid armies, and the terrain advantage. Czerka Hunter Killer droids make deadly snipers and their artillery is overwhelming so Boss Nass employs a Fabian strategy — escaping to thickets, hills and jungles once the fighting gets too concentrated, slowly whittling down the droid forces and frustrating their support.

The palace assault must first retake the throne room to shut down communications between the droid ships and the troops. Amidala and her handmaidens do this with the aid of the Jedi and some of the Gungan special forces, led by infiltration expert, General Jar Jar Binks. Next they split up to climb to the top of palace and recapture the royal apartments which house the command codes for the droid forces.

In the close atmosphere above Theed, we see the Naboo squadrons engage a fleet of Czerka drones surrounding the droid control ship. The combat is thick and the numbers are overwhelming, but the Naboo fighters are well outfitted and Plo Koon uses Battle Meditation to protect them. Anakin is inspired by this power and uses it to great effect. But the fighting gets thicker and thicker, and their fighters can’t damage the control ship’s shields. Then three Czerka capital cruisers hyperspace into the battle to make things look desperate.

Boss Nass and his troops are stuck in a jungle that’s burning around them. They are trying to hail Queen Amidala’s strike team but can’t get any reply. The Jedi leap into the battle as it’s become a close-quarters fight now, and Boss Nass calls the final retreat. They will pull back into a series of caves and hold till the fight ends — one way or another.

Back in the palace Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon sense a terrible darkness approaching. They cannot get the other infiltration team on the comms and the two Jedi Knights are missing. Just before the final hallway to Amidala’s apartments, Darth Maul and the Wounded reveal themselves in combat with the missing Knights. Maul has a double-sided red lightsaber and the Wounded is wielding the stolen yellow and blue sabers. Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon try to help but are too late to save the Knights who both die by Maul’s hand. They leap into battle and that frees Amidala and her team to continue on.

The Queen takes her apartments back and they find that the leader of the Czerka occupation forces is not a military leader or some titan of industry, but an old, bed-ridden man on dialysis. It’s shocking to everyone except Queen Amidala who is just disgusted. Jar Jar almost murders the man in his sleep, but Sabé restrains him. They start looking for the command codes and restoring planet-wide comms as the scene changes.

Obi-Wan is in a battle with the Wounded and Qui-Gon is holding off Darth Maul. Maul is too strong, too powerful and fast for Qui-Gon, but he’s wise and experienced enough to know this isn’t the real fight. Obi-Wan finds that the Wounded isn’t actually fighting him at all, the exo-suit is, and pities the Kaleesh. He disarms and incapacitates the would-be assassin, and tries to apologize to the being for all the pain he’s endured. The Wounded is too angry, too rabid from agony to hear the Jedi’s words — he hates the Force and any who wield it. Obi-Wan then rushes off to help his master with Darth Maul.

As the naval battle is getting out of control, Anakin flies by a portion of the control ship that looks like a trench running down the underbelly to the engines. He says he’s got an idea, but will need R2-D2’s help, his astromech in the battle. R2 slaves one of the Czerka drones to him then, uses it as a beacon to pick up a dozen others to follow their fighter down the trench. Then, as Anakin banks and turns at maximum speed, the drones trying to follow him slam into to the hull of the cruiser one by one till the last couple smash through the engines when he clears it.

As the command ship begins to list, Republic fleets leap into the fray and save the Naboo squadrons. A fleet made up of Mon Cal, Quarren, Corellian and Nubian battle cruisers cut off the Czerka armada, and the planets of Duros, Corfai and Hosnian Prime provide fighter and medical support. Then the voice of Queen Amidala transmits in everyone’s ears, declaring Naboo free from Czerka control. Boss Nass and the ground forces come out of the caves to find the Czerka droids deactivated.

Finally we return to the Duel of the Fates. Darth Maul is completely unleashed by all the death and suffering the battle has brought to Naboo. Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon are giving as much ground as they gain. Obi-Wan feels a pull to the dark side and internally feels a struggle he didn’t know he’d ever face — if he uses the Dark Side to defeat Maul, how could that serve evil, he wonders? But Qui-Gon senses it in him and reaches out through the Force to remind his apprentice that using the Dark Side to earn victory is worse than defeat.

The moment is intimate and personal, and solidifies Obi-Wan Kenobi as a Jedi Knight. In the next moment, Darth Maul pushes the back half of his double-sided lightsaber through Qui-Gon’s heart. The Force then flows through Obi-Wan who moves too fast for Maul to perceive. He picks up his master’s blade, overwhelms Darth Maul, and slices him clean in half at the hips. As Maul falls into a bottomless pit, writhing and screaming in agony, Obi-Wan returns to his master’s side.

Qui-Gon is too weak to say what he really wants to. So all he says to Obi-Wan is: “The boy… must protect him.” Obi-Wan promises to honor his wishes and thanks him for all he’s done for the Galaxy, then says goodbye.

…

There is much to celebrate on Naboo and there are many characters who need to reunite and tell their war stories. Anakin and Sabé share a kiss of passion and excitement, which does not seem to please Padmé one bit. The Queen and her Vice Regent are contacted by Senator Palpatine who informs them that the senate has voted to declare war on Czerka Corp. More than a dozen worlds have engaged in some form of fighting against the slavers, and more are to come. What’s more, Palpatine has been nominated to run against Chancellor Valorum!

As Palpatine’s holo-image fades, we see an older Count Dooku with a full-grown gray beard and a clean white lab coat, receive a transmission. Lama Su is in the room leading a meeting with other Kaminoan dignitaries. Dooku reads the transmission to himself, then laughs out loud. He realizes what he did, clears his throat then intimates that the presentation can continue. His brow furrows as a smile creeps over his face, then the scene goes black.

Back on Naboo, Anakin is the center of the fun as they drink and cavort into the night. Mace Windu and Plo Koon are watching from a distance, discussing Qui-Gon and his beliefs. Mace intimates that Jinn was never one to lend credence to prophecies or visions — so why the change of heart? Plo Koon says perhaps the boy changed him, then adds that maybe that’s the whole point. Mace asks Plo Koon if he would take Anakin on as his apprentice, but Koon declines, saying that job is Obi-Wan’s alone, if it is anyone’s, implying he might agree with Qui-Gon — that Anakin should not be trained at all.

Mace shakes his head and drops it, saying that the new threat of the Sith will not make things easier for the Jedi. They will need all the allies they can muster, if they hope to survive the coming conflict.

-STAR WARS-

_epilogue_

As the smoking rubble around Theed settles, something stirs from beneath the destruction. The Wounded is unconscious, bloody and caked in mud, but the exo-suit forces him to his feet and away from the city altogether. He’s greeted by a hooded Dark Lord of the Sith who brings the Wounded to his lair. There, the Dark Lord cackles as he uses Alchemy to fuse a new exo-skeleton onto what remains of the Kaleesh assassin.

He wakes midway through the process and screams in agony. Is it his fate to suffer eternally at the hands of Force-users? The Dark Lord laughs and fills the lab with lightning, then tells him he shall need a new name after his rebirth. His wounds had grown too grievous. The Kaleesh asks what the Dark Lord could possibly want with him. The Sith replies that there is a war coming and he will need a General.

…The End…


	2. Attack of the Clones

A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away...

_prologue_

With the sounds of celebration fading in the distance, we watch as a newly knighted Obi-Wan Kenobi hops into a Jedi Starfighter and flies away from Naboo to land on Dantooine. He’s greeted by a warm and inviting Yoda, who sets aside his work for the reunion. Obi-Wan holds back tears as he explains the circumstances of Qui-Gon’s passing, and the feeling of serenity that encased him as he defeated Maul. Yoda listens to everything patiently, then offers to meditate with him.

As they commune, Yoda tells Obi-Wan that a Jedi must be committed to do what is good above all else. It’s a trap to think that doing what is right is enough — for sometimes the right thing can be the most terrible. Obi-Wan says that reminds him of something Qui-Gon used to say. Yoda nods and says he has learned much from his master, then adds that he wishes Dooku had heeded the same advice.

Obi-Wan is surprised to hear the name of his master’s former master evoked, so Yoda informs him that Dooku came and met with him about five years ago. It wasn’t a good meeting but not necessarily a bad one. Yoda is cryptic and evasive, so Obi-Wan doesn’t press the matter. Just before Obi-Wan departs, he asks if Yoda will ever return to the Order. Yoda doesn’t believe there should be an Order anymore, so no, he will never return.

And besides, he adds, if over eight centuries of service isn’t enough, than what is? At some point, everything must come to an end…

_end of prologue_

# -STAR WARS-

> The corporate slavers are defeated! After five years of righteous conflict, the Republic strikes a final blow to Czerka Corp and takes control of their galactic holdings. The Senate sets up a special advisory board to handle the massive task of dismantling the corporate monopoly, headed by the newly elected Grand Chancellor of the Republic, Sheev Palpatine.
> 
> Leading them to glorious victory is the heroic Queen Amidala of Naboo. She and her allies formed a coalition which crushed any fleet that stood before them, freeing much of the Outer Rim from the cruel slavers.
> 
> With peace restored to the Galaxy, the Jedi hope that the Sith plot can be uncovered before it is too late…

Jedi Padawan Anakin Skywalker has spent five years absorbing all he could from the Temple on Coruscant. He entered the academy as an adept, like a youngling would, and quickly distinguished himself for more than just his advanced age. The Council was willing to forgo his training altogether, but Anakin declined. He wanted to live the life of a novice and not receive any special treatment.

He is strong in the Force and patient about his lessons. His masters consider him an asset in classes because he helps teach the younger, less capable students. He’s happy and comfortable, but the Jedi Council see this as complacency.

To complicate matters, Sabé of Naboo is his closest friend and confidant. She moved to Coruscant to serve as an aide to Senator Binks, after a battle-wound scarred her face, rendering her unable to do her duties as a handmaiden.

They spend many evenings together, either in study or at play, and it is a cause for concern among Anakin’s closer friends, as well. They worry that he’s treading too close to the edge of oblivion, that innocent fun is the first step on the path to suffering and pain. He says they worry too much: He’s been doing this for years and what the masters don’t know can’t hurt them. Besides, he adds, there is a difference between rules you must follow, and those you shouldn’t get caught breaking.

…

Theed is a very different city these days, and Queen Amidala rules over a changed Naboo. Gone are the egalitarian society and the beautiful, artistic monoliths that dominated the skyline. Now, the capital of Naboo manufactures more arms and ammunition than they can train troops. The factories never rest and five years worth of captured and repurposed Czerka tech, bolsters their numbers. It is a hotbed of revolutionary activity and the center of the Republic’s Outer Rim expansion.

The Republic has reached more worlds in the Outer Rim in the past half-decade than the last millennia. Leading this war effort is the warrior queen Padmé Amidala. She and her Vice Regent, Boss Nass, and her Jedi protector, Master Plo Koon, have run such an effective military campaign against the the Czerka slavers, that some wonder what her rule will even look like in peace time?

With the end of the conflict, much of the Republic fleet returns home — Mon Cal, Hosnian Prime, Duros and Corellia, each have conflicts in their own systems and sectors that need resolution. So Naboo and the Inner Rim system of Nubia enter into an agreement: Nubia will make the ships, Naboo will outfit and man them, and together they’ll maintain their military supremacy. The agreement would require a secret meeting between the rulers of the two worlds, presided over by Master Plo Koon.

The day of the meeting they receive reports that Nubia is not responding to transmissions of any kind. Plo Koon advises they be patient, report to the senate and allow the Jedi to find out more, but Boss Nass and Padmé do not agree. Amidala believes there are any number of things that could be happening to block transmissions, and every single one of them requires a strike force. Koon intimates that Queen Amidala lacks imagination, but softens his stance. Nass adds that even if there’s an innocent reason for a full communications lock down on an otherwise peaceful world, they can just send the fleet home and call it a drill.

Plo Koon agrees and the Queen of Naboo sails to Nubia with her armada, ready for war.

…

A Jedi Knight is trying to send a transmission back to the temple on Pantora but blaster fire keeps interrupting him. It’s fighting for its life and fleeing, trying to get a message off-world, while its padawan struggles to keep up. The Knight falters to try to save its apprentice, and the communicator is destroyed in the process. The Knight turns to face its attacker — Jango Fett. Jango uses a weapon in his gauntlet that upends gravity and sends the Jedi off its feet. Then he lassos the Knight and sends a deadly current of yellow-lightning through the exhausted warrior.

The Jedi dies on its knees, then drops down to the ground when Jango releases his coil. The Padawan cries out and attacks but Fett quickly subdues and restrains the youngling. Jango slowly picks through the Jedi Knight’s things and asks the padawan if it considered the Jedi to be like family. The padwan responds through angry tears that the Jedi do not have attachments like families, because they are a weakness to be exploited. Jango laughs and asks what are all the tears for, then?

Fett retrieves the dead knight’s lightsaber, and snaps it in half in his hands to retrieve the precious Kyber within. Jango says just one of these little crystals could buy him a yacht, two could buy him a capital cruiser. He then breaks the young apprentice’s lightsaber, and the youngling weeps even harder. Jango tilts his head and offers that maybe the Jedi were right about attachments and weakness… That sets the youngling off. The padawan uses a burst of Dark Side power to toss Jango off a ledge, but Fett uses his jetpack to return and shoot the kid down dead. As he flies away, he uses his flamethrower to torch the area.

Jango boards the Slave One and hails Lord Tyranus, to inform him that he has the holocron he was sent to retrieve. Tyranus tells him to meet the courier on Nar Shadaa then to return to Kamino and prepare for battle. Jango acknowledges, jumps to hyperspace and lands on the festering, criminal city-world. The landscape is much like Coruscant but without the culture, the art, or the sunlight, as pollution hangs in the air like a never-ending fog. Jango exits his ship and is immediately accosted by Obi-Wan Kenobi.

Obi-Wan ask him where Maul is, but Fett says that he’s crazy — he’s just chasing ghosts. Jango tries to stand and fight, but Obi-Wan is more than his match, so he flees. They battle across the skyline and Jango nearly escapes by trying to bring down a building on top of them both, but Obi-Wan manages to brace the building and ensnare Fett. He returns to a refitted Corellian Corvette, dubbed _The Shatterpoint II_ , and Raymus Antilles and the rest of the crew are excited to have Jango finally in their clutches. Antilles is Alderaanian, who’ve been enemies of Mandalore for nearly 10,000 years, so capturing a famous Mandalorian is especially sweet for him.

As they leave the system, Obi-Wan begins to interrogate his captive. Jango is very prepared to resist him and it convinces Kenobi that the Mando is working with a Sith Lord. This rattles Fett enough that Obi-Wan manages to probe deeper into his mind. The name “Lord Tyranus” comes to him first, and Jango cries out for relief. He says he was hired by a man who called himself Sifo-Dyas, and that he paid him double his usual rate — not that a Jedi would understand a thing like working for a living.

Obi-Wan is so unsettled by this revelation that he stops the interrogation there. As he contemplates calling the Council, they receive an emergency transmission from Plo Koon. It’s a recording. Master Koon and the Naboo war fleet are going to the aid of Nubia. He fears that no matter what is waiting for them there, Queen Amidala is going to find a fight. He asks that Obi-Wan come and help him with whatever crisis awaits them and MTFBWY.

Raymus offers the advice that their mission was to return with Fett to the Council for interrogation. They’ve been tracking this Sith lord for years, and they finally have his trigger-man in custody — this is their best chance at bringing Maul down for good. Obi-Wan offers that they might be tracking down the wrong Sith lord, but doesn’t elaborate further. Then he adds that Jango will still be in their custody if they go to Nubia first, and it is his duty to aid any Master of the Order that he can, and he can.

There’s no more argument to be had, so they plot a course and leap into hyperspace. As the hyperdrive engages, Raymus whispers something under his breath about having a bad feeling about this…

…

Anakin and Sabé both have work to do on their datapads, but they are happiest doing it together. They lounge in his quarters, being cute and enjoying each other’s company. Suddenly a breathless young human, Caleb Dume, and a pale-green skinned Twi’lekk named Teela Narrin, charge into the room and warn them that Sabé has to run for it. Caught up in the excitement she kisses Anakin goodbye, who beams from ear to ear, then she apologizes for the indiscretion and runs out of the room. Caleb and Teela are dumbfounded, but Anakin feels like a million credits.

That feeling comes crashing down around him when the door to his dormitory reopens to show a disappointed Master Kit Fisto, with his arms crossed. He brings Anakin before the Lower Council but they are delayed by a meeting. While they are forced to wait, Kit explains to Anakin that he’s earned lenience because of his special circumstances — humans usually are inducted as infants and done with their Temple training by the age of eleven or twelve, while he’s in his mid-twenties. But just because his behavior has been tolerated to this point, that does not mean it is excused.

The Lower Council denies Master Fisto’s request and Anakin is sent back to his rooms. An increasingly frustrated Fisto is taken to see the High Council while Anakin and his buddies settle in to play a couple rounds of sabacc. Skywalker can’t stop daydreaming about the kiss Sabé gave him until an indignant Master Luminara Unduli enters the dormitory and sentences all three of them to unscheduled cleaning duties. They are taken to the laundry room and forced to work alongside the Reservists and droids assigned there. The trio aren’t the only ones in detention, either, so Anakin quickly rallies everyone to turn the work into a kind of game to help pass the time.

Meanwhile, Kit Fisto meets with the other masters of the High Council. Ki Adi Mundi and Yaddle tell of a story of a Force-being who would be born amidst the darkness and return the galaxy to the light. The One would balance the Force forever by destroying the Sith. But it would come at a terrible price, too great for one being to bear.

The Council believes, as Qui-Gon Jinn once believed, that Anakin is the fulfillment of this prophecy.

Fisto is shocked, not only hear that the Council kept this secret for half a decade, but they have been treating one of their apprentices like a sacrificial lamb on the alter of destiny. The Council tells him that he is sworn now to the same secrecy as the rest of them, or else he faces unforeseen consequences. Mace Windu then suggests it is time that Anakin leave the capital. There are too many temptations for him on Coruscant. Plo Koon offers to take him on, not as a master but as an advisor, adding that Anakin might help temper the unpredictable Padmé Amidala. The Council agrees and the holo-images fade away.

…

On the bridge of Queen Amidala’s flagship, _The Progress_ , handmaiden’s Eirtaé, Berilé and Queen Padmé are going over their most recent data on Nubia with the rest of the war council. Panaka and Typho are present as holo-images, Plo Koon is on-hand and Boss Nass paces among the flight crew, taking note of absolutely everything. Padmé jests that if worse comes to worse, they’ve got the guns and manpower to occupy the world for as long as necessary. Plo Koon is no fun, scolding that invading a Republic world is not within his purview. Amidala calls him a party-pooper then ups the ante, asking: what Master Koon would do if the Jedi Council demanded he assassinate her.

The mere suggestion causes a bit of an uproar, but once it dies down Koon explains that it is an impossible hypothetical, and therefore has no merit. Amidala acknowledges that the Jedi Council wouldn’t actually do that, but adds that her point remains — anything is corruptible. As that final sentiment lingers in the air like a rancid fart, the armada drops out of hyperspace to behold the system of Nubia.

The world is ringed by space trash and the Naboo fleet is forced to pull back to avoid shrapnel damage. A massive space battle had occurred recently, that much was clear, but not much else. Amidala sends out a call to any and all surviving beings in the system, and slowly they formulate a picture of what happened. At some point within the past few days, a fleet from Sienar Systems attacked and battled Nubia to an uneasy cease-fire. The blockade continued but neither side of the conflict was strong enough to defeat the other.

With the presence of the powerful Naboo fleet bearing down on them, both sides sue for peace and delegations meet on _The Progress_ to negotiate terms of surrender. It does not take long to see that both Sienar and Nubia are willing to die fighting, so Amidala imprisons the delegations on her ship and demands that the Prime Minister of Nubia and the Chairman of Sienar come to her or she will invade and wipe out any military force that stands in her way.

The gambit works and Prime Minister Kelvin Marcosh meets with Padmé, Boss Nass, Plo Koon and Chairman Clarita Sienar, on _The Progress_. In the disarmament negotiations it is revealed that all of the galaxy’s largest military producers have reduced their output by over fifty percent. Kuat Drive Yards and Kuat Systems, Sienar , Sorosub, Incom and dozens of others have all reduced to unsustainable production levels and not from lack of buyers, but lack of resources.

The only places to remain relatively stable through this time are Core worlds like Cygnus or Corellia, or the well-defended Mon Calamari. Nubia is small and remote enough to appear as an easy target for a company on its last legs, like Sienar. Millions have been laid off already and billions more would be before long — it was an existential crisis, so the chairman had to act. It’s looking like there’s going to be nothing but losers coming out of this situation, when Obi-Wan Kenobi and _The Shatterpoint II_ drop out of hyperspace and hail them.

Amidala and her handmaidens are pleased to welcome their old friend back to council and Plo Koon quickly appraises him of the situation. As negotiations come to a close an alarm is raised by the ship’s security team. There was an explosion in the hangar bay and a fighter was stolen, along with the prisoner Jango Fett! The fighter destroys a few Sienar and Naboo ships on its way out of the system the hyperspaces to safety.

Raymus wants to chase him down immediately, Obi-Wan is inclined to agree but Plo Koon urges patience. They will track Jango and his compatriots wherever they go, but in the meantime they must warn the Council and the Republic about all they’ve seen and learned. With the help of the High Council, they’ll be able to decide the best way to proceed with regards to Fett and this mysterious Lord Tyranus. Also, Nubia and Sienar will need all the help they can get to rebuild after all the destruction they wrought on one other.

Obi-Wan reluctantly agrees, mentioning that Raymus will be furious, but he knows it’s for the best. They track Jango and his savior to the Serenno system, the home of Count Dooku. Plo Koon mentions that’s interesting, because Dooku left the Jedi Order years ago and has mostly left the public eye. Obi-Wan then adds that he knows Dooku was once Qui-Gon’s master, and then relates the cryptic warning he received from Yoda five years ago. Plo Koon says that they must meditate on this, and the scene ends with Nubia and Sienar agreeing to peace terms.

…

We go to the Count’s citadel on Serenno where Dooku receives word that Jango Fett never met with his courier on Nar Shadaa. He is clearly displeased and summons the leaders of the newly formed Separatist alliance. They must amass their forces immediately; he commands and they obey. The Banking Clan and Trade Federation are backing him, helping to fund a massive droid army built in secret by the Geonosians. Then he summons up his courage and hails his master who is displeased to hear about Jango’s failure, but does not sound surprised.

The master intimates that Fett’s failure is truly Dooku’s, and that it will ultimately cost him his life. For now though, he must begin the next phase of their plan. Dooku will abandon his military post and enter the public life once more. In time the Separatist Confederacy will name him their Head of State. When Dooku presses his master on who will lead their forces into battle, the Dark Lord laughs and tells him that General Grievous will be with him shortly. The transmission ends and then Dooku gets word that an approaching Republic fighter is broadcasting Jango Fett’s clearance codes.

Dooku clears it for landing and watches as the Kaleesh (now General Grievous) and Jango Fett disembark. Grievous is tall and strong with his state-of-the-art metal frame, and a cape flowing gloriously behind him as he trudges forward. Besides a random cough here and there, he’s perfect. Jango looks unimpressive by comparison — Dooku immediately likes his master’s newest pet. Grievous is cold and unfriendly for his part, as he hates Force-users, but can recognize the immense power Tyranus wields.

Jango apologizes for being captured, but offers the Kyber crystals and stolen holocron as restitution. As he explains what happened, he finishes by telling Tyranus that he was able to trick Obi-Wan. It worked, he says, I only had to mention Sifo-Dyas’s name and the Jedi was too distraught to continue the interrogation. This seems to please Dooku, who then gifts the Kyber crystals to Grievous. Grievous bows gratefully, then Dooku tells the general it’s time he mobilize his troops.

Jango says he’ll be ready to get back to work as soon as he gets his ship back, but Dooku waves him off. Jango must go to Coruscant, he has a new mission to complete before his master can begin his great work. Jango promises not to fail him again, then departs for Nar Shadaa.

…

Back on Coruscant we see Sabé sitting in on a meeting with Senator Binks, presided over by Chancellor Palpatine himself. They are having a heated discussion regarding the current military structure of the Republic. Bail Organa and Chancellor Palpatine do not believe there is any need to begin conscription of a Republic Army. Binks and others believe otherwise, and offer the new crisis in Nubia as evidence.

When the meeting ends, a personal aide to Palpatine named Janus, pulls Sabé aside to ask about her relationship with Anakin. The assumption is that Palpatine himself is asking, so she dare not deny him. She informs Janus that they are still quite close and have plans to see a light show together that evening. Janus is pleased and compliments Senator Binks for having such a loyal Nabooian assistant, to which she corrects him by saying she was actually born on Alderaan, but grew up on Naboo serving in the home of the Naberries. The evocation of Bail’s homeworld brings him into the conversation and Janus takes his leave.

Sabé tells Anakin about the unsettling experience that evening as they’re walking to the show. He says he’s starting to feel like the capital isn’t a very friendly place, which earns a scoff from Sabé. She calls him insulated, and Anakin says she’s right, but he’s happy. During the show she asks Anakin if he’s ever considered leaving the Order behind. Palpatine would give him a job in a heartbeat, and maybe a return to the real world would do him good. He asks her if she would get a bonus if he put her name on his job application, and she drops the subject altogether.

After the show they stop by an outdoor wine-sink for some refreshments. Anakin and Sabé are looking at their datapads, when a message dings on Anakin’s that he clearly wishes she didn’t see. She asks him what that was and he has to admit that he’s been keeping in touch with The Guild. Now she’s the one that gets to feign indignance, so she lays it on thick. How dare you steal Jedi secrets? — she says and pokes him in the ribs. Anakin says it’s not stealing as much as sharing. She says she doubts his masters would see it that way.

Suddenly Anakin raises his voice and slams down his drink. He asks her precisely when the Jedi took ownership of the mysteries of the Force? How could anyone, or any group, possess such power? Is that what the Republic is about — establishing and protecting monopolies? Is it any different because it is a religion?

Sabé deescalates by asking Anakin if he’s ever talked to anyone about these questions? It seems like he’s got doubts that she couldn’t possibly help him with, but perhaps there is someone at the Temple that could? Anakin realizes how heated he got and apologizes with another round of drinks. They have a fun night and end up sleeping together. Anakin has to get back to the Temple before gets caught out of bed, but before he goes, Sabé asks him what took him so long to make a move — Was it Padmé? He kisses away her questions, then leaves.

As soon as Anakin exits her apartments he’s apprehended by Jedi Sentinels who bring him directly to the High Council. A bemused hologram of Chancellor Palpatine joins them as they discuss Anakin’s many transgressions and possible punishment. Palpatine offers a suggestion: Anakin be assigned to his staff as his personal body guard and ward. The Chancellor could teach him about statecraft and the complexities of galactic politics, and it would give him an opportunity to spend some time away from the Temple, which his actions show he clearly desires.

The Council deny this request outright. Mace Windu especially does not appreciate the idea, so Anakin asks to take his destiny into his own hands. He says that he is ready for the trials, that he can earn the rank of Knight without ever having a master. This too the Council denies without discussion. Ki Adi Mundi tells Anakin he must take a master before he will ever be anything more than a learner. But, being that they shall not force him to take one, instead they will send him to assist the Naboo in their quest to rebuild Nubia.

Anakin balks initially at the idea, but Mace adds that more than a dozen masters and knights have tried to take him on as an apprentice and failed. If Anakin refuses this offer as well, they will have to begin to consider expelling him from the academy and turning him into a Reservist. Master Saesee Tiin intimates that he could be assigned to the motorpool, or work as an Order pilot. But since no one really wants that for Anakin, he agrees to leave in the morning for Nubia. Before he even makes it back to his dormitory, he sends a message to Sabé to meet him and say their goodbyes.

They would never get the opportunity, because instead of meeting with Sabé at their secret place, Jango Fett appears and abducts Anakin. He knocks him out and stows him aboard the Slave One, then quickly makes for the atmosphere. What Jango does not realize is that Sabé was following him the entire way to the hangar and beyond, when she borrows a senate shuttle using her credentials and some quick thinking.

As she follows them into space, she considers calling the Temple, but does not know how much she can trust the Jedi, nor how much they’d trust her. She then considers Padmé but her feelings for Anakin make that idea untenable. Instead, she decides to call Obi-Wan Kenobi, the one Jedi from her past that she trusts to care about Anakin’s well-being. She is right.

…

The scene flips to Obi-Wan, receiving an emergency call from a breathless, teary-eyed Sabé. She tells him that she is tracking the Slave One, which just jumped to hyperspace headed for Geonosis. Obi-Wan is visibly upset, while Amidala is enraged — and not only to learn that she can’t trust Sabé around Anakin. Jango managed to crisscross the galaxy and infiltrate the Jedi Temple of Coruscant while they’ve just sat around signing agreements and distributing supplies. Plo Koon is worried about what will happen if he can’t restrain the warrior queen much longer.

In her rage, Amidala demands fealty from the remaining Sienar and Nubian forces in the system. They will mobilize for war and besiege Serenno to force Dooku to surrender. In the meanwhile, Obi-Wan and _The Shatterpoint II_ will track down Sabé and rescue Anakin from Geonosis. Padmé asks that Plo Koon join Obi-Wan because it is the only way she’ll be comfortable with not going to Geonosis herself.

They are all forced to agree with the queen’s plan and soon the Jedi and the armada leap into hyperspace.

…

Obi-Wan and Plo Koon have to fight through a squadron of drones to save Sabé’s helpless shuttle over Geonosis. Together the three of them land on the planet and hunt down Anakin in the depths of the droid factory yards. The Jedi easily overwhelm his guards and release him, then the four of them do some scouting of the operation on their way out. The Geonosians have a massive army and are continuously adding to its staggering size. Sabé slices a panel in the wall that gives them access to the vents, and they climb over a large audience chamber.

There they witness as the leaders of the Separatist alliance meet with Count Dooku. He is explaining a plan to simultaneously consolidate military power while expanding their political reach. They know the hypocrisy and corruption in the Republic will naturally recruit many nations to their confederacy, so they must be vigilant. Nute Gunray offers to name Dooku their Head of State, but he says he will not accept that position till the full parliament gets to vote.

They continue to plan but Anakin is distracted by a sense in the Force. Obi-Wan says he feels it too — Jango is leaving Geonosis. They too make their escape, and Anakin takes the Jedi Starfighter by himself to chase down the Slave One. Jango and Anakin have a spectacular battle in the asteroid belt surrounding Geonosis, resulting in the young Jedi nearly destroying them both, but the wily Fett manages to escape and hyperspaces to an unregistered world.

Anakin almost leaps after him, but Obi-Wan, who is flying with Sabé in the shuttle, cautions him not to be hasty. They need to inform the Republic what’s going on here, and the Council will be able to offer further illumination on the mysterious world Jango’s headed toward. Anakin is reluctant to play the waiting game, and even Obi-Wan seems anxious about it once Sabé shames them for their trepidation, but it makes no difference. Before they can do anything, a massive space battle hyperspaces into the atmosphere above Geonosis.

The battle over Serenno was a rout and the Republic chased their prey here. All at once, the battered forces under General Grievous’s command come plummeting through the atmosphere, seeking shelter amongst the droid armies of Geonosis. Queen Amidala’s fleet chase him and his cohorts down, and the battle takes on a second front. The ground battle rages as Plo Koon, Obi-Wan and Anakin join the terrific combat. Dooku and the rest of the Separatist leadership manage to escape under the cover of the battle, and then Grievous sends out a retreat order.

The Separatist droids all leap into hyperspace on seemingly random headings, as the Republic forces capture the system and its coveted factories. Then Boss Nass uncovers the most important treasure among the trove, the command codes for all the existing droids in the Separatist fleet. All at once, the armada that Grievous and Dooku were planning to use to overthrow the Republic, comes into the possession of Queen Amidala. She’s defeated them before they ever got to start their civil war; and, become the most powerful being in the galaxy outside of the Chancellor.

As the Republic celebrates their victory, Chancellor Palpatine invites Amidala and her armada back to Coruscant. She declines, and then reveals that she has no intention of turning over the Geonosian army or foundries to the Republic. Rather, she lays claim to them by way of conquest and defies anyone to take them from Naboo. Plo Koon, of course does not agree with this decision, but can understand a queen not wanting to relinquish valuable assets in a time of war.

Also, something about having Anakin around makes Amidala feel invincible. They reconnect and Padmé makes it clear she wishes she was able to get some alone time in with him. Sabé is forced into the shadows by her old boss, once more. Anakin is oblivious to much of this because he’s just happy to be around his two favorite women in the galaxy, and focused on bringing Jango to justice. Obi-Wan says he will join Anakin and Plo Koon is happy with this result. Sabé offers to join them, but Padmé rebuffs her, sending her back to Coruscant.

The Council investigates the coordinates that Anakin sends them, and it’s determined that Jango escaped to a world known as Kamino. Somehow it was erased from the public and Jedi archives — a nearly inconceivable feat. More disturbing, hyperspace routes have been rerouted to avoid it entirely. The whole thing reeks of incomprehensible bureaucratic know-how and malevolence, but that is a matter for the Council to handle. Obi-Wan then offers his suspicions of Sifo-Dyas being Lord Tyranus, explaining that he has reason to believe that Maul had an overlord, and perhaps even Dooku still answers to his old master. The Council does not acknowledge his suspicions, but approves Anakin and Obi-Wan for a recon mission, and the two take off for the Mid Rim.

…

General Grievous is mortally wounded and flying a heavily damaged cruiser into the atmosphere of Kuat. His crew is dead around him, killed by his own hand when they turned to Amidala’s side, and now he must single-handedly land the wreck of a ship. As he drops toward the ground, it’s clear to see that the Kuat Drive Yards are outfitting an entire fleet of Venator-Class Star Destroyers. Grievous barely survives the landing, but Dooku is there to rescue him and once he’s stabilized, ships him back to their master.

Dooku then calls Jango on a handheld holocommunicator. He tells Jango to prepare for his arrival. Fett replies that he cannot believe how well everything is going to plan. Dooku reminds him that they have the Force on their side, then hangs up. We then follow Jango as he tells his ten year old son to pack up their gear and get the ship prepped. Little Boba nods before running off to do as his father commands. Jango exits his apartments and heads toward the central pod of the Kaminoan facility.

Lama Su leads Jango through the cloning plant and discuss the current status of the commissioned army. 200,000 units are ready for combat and a million more can be expected by the end of the cycle. In this conversation we learn that the clones grow twice as fast as normal humans, are genetically modified to be stronger and faster than average beings, and behavior modification makes them 100% loyal. They shall make him proud, they say glowingly and Jango agrees. Lama Su even mentions that it was a curiosity that he kept Boba unmodified, but Jango doesn’t expect a cloner to get it.

Then we see that Anakin and Obi-Wan have been hiding in the rafters above, observing the entire conversation. It takes all of Obi-Wan’s tenacity to convince Anakin not to attack, deciding that warning the Republic is more important than capturing Jango. They try to steal away to their ship, but are cut off by mobilizing troops. The Jedi are forced to watch as platoon after platoon of Clone Troopers prepare for… something.

That is when Dooku’s brand new fleet hyperspaces into orbit over Kamino and sends down landing craft to retrieve the troopers. There are dozens of Star Destroyers awaiting them and hundreds of ships flying in and out of the atmosphere. The Jedi know they can’t do anything with so many eyes about, and all communications would be monitored anyway. They have to watch and wait till the last of the Clone Troops take off and Dooku’s fleet leaves the system.

When Obi-Wan and Anakin finally make for their ship, they’re accosted by Kaminoan guards and forced to steal a submarine to escape. Obi-Wan and Anakin dodge angry Kaminoan warriors and the massive, unfriendly fauna below the raging seas, to finally return to their ship. They call Coruscant and inform the Council all that they’ve learned. The Council says there is no time to wait, they must mobilize the Republic for war.

Then Plo Koon interrupts the transmission to report that their fleet is under attack. Dooku has returned to liberate Geonosis and he has a whole new fleet with him. Mace Windu says he will inform the Chancellor and then bring a strike force to assist Plo Koon. Obi-Wan and Anakin also say they are on their way, and quickly make for hyperspace.

The moment after the Jedi Starfighter leaves the system, Lama Su and the Kaminoans begin to mobilize their entire operation for transport.

…

When Sabé returns to Coruscant she is immediately taken by Janus and a pair of red-robed Chancellor Guards. She asks them where they are taking her but no one responds. The longer they walk, the darker the hallways and stairways get. She’s panicking, terror has nearly paralyzed her by the time they open the final door.

It slides open and she’s in the penthouse of the Senate apartments, facing a kindly, smiling Chancellor Palpatine. He’s sitting at a desk and nods to offer her a seat and some tea. She cannot stop trembling with fear but it seems to be for no reason. As Janus and the guards leave, Palpatine asks her about her trip to Geonosis, then the door slides shut…

…

The battle in the atmosphere above Geonosis is hotly contested between the two powerful armadas. The conflict on the planet’s surface is even more-so. Dooku is forced to land if he wants to win the day, and it appears that’s exactly what he will do. The Republic is unable to hold their battle lines and are forced to retreat to the foundries to hold back the Clone insurgency. Before the Republic is forced to abandon Geonosis altogether, Obi-Wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker chase down and confront a fully revealed Dooku. They battle nobly with him, but he’s too powerful for them.

When he goes for a killing blow, he’s interrupted by a pissed off Mace Windu. Dooku tells Windu that he’s waited a long time for this — Mace says he hopes he doesn’t disappoint. They have a tremendous, complex battle of skills and sabers, but it ends in a stand-still. Before Mace can gain the upper-hand, Dooku escapes by dropping a column on Obi-Wan and Anakin, forcing Mace to save his comrades rather than win the duel. Dooku escapes to the safety of his Clone forces and the Jedi are forced to retreat from Geonosis with the rest of the Republic troops.

Just before Amidala abandons the system altogether, she throws a kill-switch on the Geonosian droid factories, destroying them rather than losing them to Separatist hands. Amidala and her fleet return to Naboo to lick their wounds and plan their next steps. Her allies return to their homes, and then it is discovered that in the commotion of trying to escape Geonosis, the commandeered droid command codes were taken to Coruscant and placed in the keeping of the Chancellor.

Thus the Clone Wars begin: The Clone Troopers fighting for the Separatist Confederacy, and the stolen droid armies of Geonosis and Czerka Corp to defend the Republic.

…

By the time the Republic Navy converges on Kamino, the entire cloning operation has disappeared without a trace. Dooku and Fett abandon Geonosis and are lost to the Galaxy for a time. Palpatine gives a senatorial address informing the entire galaxy of the events that just transpired. He declares Dooku a traitor to the Republic and democracy. The Separatists have made it clear that they do not respect the sovereignty of the Republic, and that is something they cannot abide.

Thus he proposes that the Senate vote on a declaration of war against these Separatists and any other world that would oppose the freedom their Republic offers. He adds that with his new friends at Czerka and Sienar, as well as the massive holdings captured from the traitorous Geonosians, the Republic will form a grand army to combat this new threat. The Senate applauds their glorious leader and the scene shows that the Jedi Council were watching the speech on a holoscreen.

Ki Adi Mundi and the rest of the Council tell Anakin that in light of his service, they are willing to confer on him the rank of Knight. Anakin declines, saying there is much more he needs to learn, and he finally thinks he might need a master. As Obi-Wan and Anakin leave their meeting with the Council, Obi-Wan offers to train him. Anakin asks if Obi-Wan really thinks he’s up for the job. Obi-Wan asks what’s the worst that could happen — Anakin shrugs and says they could get each other killed. Then they laugh and laugh and laugh.

Their fun is interrupted when another message broadcasts across the Holonet. This time Dooku is addressing the galaxy amongst the Separatist parliament. He boasts that it was easy to bring together their confederacy of planets, and anticipates it will only get easier now that he’s struck a crippling blow against Palpatine’s attack dog, the queen from Naboo. Dooku claims that the Force guides him and his troops and that is why they will continue to win victories until the galaxy is free of the Republic’s corruption. The film cuts out, replaced by an error sign and then a Republic symbol, but through the static Dooku’s laugh fills the air, until it morphs into the laughter of Sidious.

…

Grievous is under the knife again, and his master is relishing the pain that emanates from the broken Kaleesh warlord. The Sith Lord fills the lab with his dark presence that feels like burnt ozone on his lungs. Lightning chases up into the recesses of the ceiling as Grievous cries out in agony, eliciting a chorus of laughs from his evil master.

…

Sabé is there to welcome Anakin when he returns to the capital and as soon as he’s free from the Temple, they reconnect. She’s taken a position in Bail Organa’s cabinet and a hefty pay raise to go along with it. Also, she’s changed her appearance by dying and cutting her hair, and wears new clothes to reflect the trends on Coruscant instead of Naboo. Anakin says he likes the changes, and helps her move into her new apartments. They look like a happy, young couple from afar.

Amidala and Boss Nass are back on Naboo and for the first time ever they don’t have a Jedi interfering with their plans. So she abdicates the throne, handing it over to Boss Nass who then uses executive order to recall Senator Binks, installing Padmé in his place. Anakin helps her move into her new apartments on Coruscant as well. She intimates that her position will give her more opportunities to get Anakin to herself. Anakin rolls his eyes and looks at her sideways. He knows as well as anyone else that she’s only in the capital for one reason: to take Palpatine’s job…

Back in the Temple, Mace Windu steps down as Grandmaster of the Order, saying that the Jedi should not have a supreme leader during a time of war. The risk of corruption is too great. Plo Koon and some of the other masters do not like the idea, so it’s agreed that as a compromise, Mace will take on the roll of Champion of the Order. When the Council is dismissed, Mace makes for the Temple library and seeks an audience with Master Jocasta Nu.

He asks her why and how the records of Kamino were removed from the archives. She does not know the answer to his questions, but does know that Master Sifo-Dyas would. He was the last one to access those specific records, and that was nearly five years ago. Mace Windu is unsettled by this information and Jocasta asks why. Mace grimaces before telling her that Sido-Dyas supposedly died over ten years ago.

# -STAR WARS-

_epilogue_

Obi-Wan activates his holocommunicator to call Yoda and bring him up to date on all that’s transpired. Yoda says he does not believe it is wise for him to take on an apprentice in a time of war, especially one with such a personal connection to him. Obi-Wan reminds Yoda that taking on a padawan is always dangerous, wartime or no, and that Anakin is unlike any apprentice the Order has ever seen. Yoda intimates that he knows what Obi-Wan is talking about, or at least so it has been foretold. But misread, some prophecies may be, while still others may unfold in the most unimaginable ways.

Confused, Obi-Wan asks Yoda what prophecy he’s talking about, but receives no clear reply. The transmission ends and Obi-Wan is left to ponder Yoda’s cryptic warning as he strokes his beard and watches Anakin fight a training drone with the blast-shield down over his eyes.

…The End…


	3. Revenge of the Sith

A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away...

_prologue_

Count Dooku leads a pair of assassin droids down an sparsely lit hallway. A great stone door at the end of the passage turns aside to reveal a man cloaked in black. Dooku kneels before his master and waits till he’s commanded to rise.

The Force grows exponentially between the two lords, whipping up wild and devastating like a tornado. His master tells Dooku to focus. The droids crumple into a pile of parts. The walls and floor quake until an altar rises up from the center of the room. It appears as a round stone table, with a dozen Jedi holocrons embedded into its rough face. As the Sith increase their power, the holocrons glow and hum.

At last, their powers activate a vision that appears real enough to touch. They watch themselves, along with General Grievous, do battle with Mace Windu, Plo Koon and Anakin Skywalker over mountains of flame a rivers of lava. The battle is intense and short, for the Jedi strike down their Sith opponents without mercy.

The vision ends and the master’s rage fills the chamber with lightning. Lord Sidious — Dooku asks from his knees once more, averting his eyes in terror — What does this mean? Sidious stops the storm to reply that it means they are still not ready — the war must continue.

# -STAR WARS-

> The galaxy is divided. As Separatist and Republic forces clash over the fate of thousands of worlds, the Jedi Order battles for its very soul. Masters and Knights have taken up leadership positions in the Republic military and grown increasingly necessary as The Clone Wars drags on. Five years in and hardly a battle is fought without a Jedi leading the charge.
> 
> But not all within the Jedi Order believe that the war is necessary. Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi, is one of the dissenters, but his closest friend and ally, Jedi Knight Anakin Skywalker, is a staunch proponent of the continuing war effort.
> 
> With resources stretched thin and the Republic fleet desperate for victory, Champion of the Order, Master Mace Windu, attempts to apprehend General Grievous in his stronghold on Kuat…

Explosions are going off somewhere overhead, and the lights flicker as Jango and a fifteen year old Boba Fett scramble to collect their possessions. A pair of Clone Troopers bar the door. They yell that they’re out of time. Boba tells one of them to grab the prototype death cannon. He does as he’s told and the Fett’s shoulder their bags.

Suddenly the door blasts inward and droids begin to pour through the opening. They fight them back till a Jedi appears. Then the Clone fires the death cannon and we see a Kyber crystal at the heart of the weapon super-heat before discharging a massive laser beam. All the droids are wiped out instantly, along with the Jedi, the weapon and the Trooper who fired it. All that remains is the pink Kyber crystal on a pile of ash. Jango scoops it up on their way out the door and down the hall.

When they escape to the Slave One, we finally get a glimpse of what’s happening around them. Kuat is under attack by Republic forces and the Fett’s flee the system under the fog of war. This world houses a vast array of shipyards and facilities, which make it impossible for the Republic and Separatists to do battle in orbit. So the battle rages directly over the city, in atmosphere.

While the two fleets pummel one another, we get a close up of Jedi Master Mace Windu, Champion of the Order, face to face with General Grievous. He says it’s time to end this war and they cross blades. Grievous is no match for the Jedi’s skills so he flees and Mace is forced to follow him on a swoop bike.

They crisscross the skyline, weaving in and out of the battle as Grievous does everything in his power to escape justice. He nearly manages to kill Mace by firing a rocket launcher at one of his own fighters, crashing it upon the Jedi. Windu is quick enough to defend himself but the swoop bike is lost in the destruction, so Grievous manages to escape. As the Separatists retreat the system, Mace looks down on the destruction the Clone Wars brought to Kuat, and furrows his brow.

…

The fighting will continue as long as there is anyone to resist us — Senator Amidala finishes her speech and receives a chorus of table banging from the committee. Supreme Chancellor Palpatine does not see things her way, arguing that oversight is a cornerstone of democracy. Amidala counters that she would agree if the war was over, or even well in hand, but it is not.

Senator Bail Organa then intimates that the Senator from Naboo might see things differently if her world wasn’t supplying the Republic war effort. Padmé quickly reminds him that the Chancellor hails from Naboo as well, but Palpatine counters that he’s from a very different Naboo than the one she ruled.

After the meeting, Padmé and Sabé take an opportunity to reconnect. Palpatine’s chief of staff, Janus, attempts to interrupt their conversation, but Padmé waives him off like a Jedi using a mind-trick. Sabé asks when she last spoke with Anakin — they both say it’s been over a year. Neither seem to trust the other entirely. It’s awkward so Sabé changes the subject, remarking how crazy it is to hold an election in the midst of a war that could be the end of the Republic.

Padmé smiles and hugs Sabé close, saying her old handmaiden hasn’t changed one bit. Sometimes she forgets how much she misses having them around. Eirtaé is a vice admiral in the Republic fleet. Berilé left service years ago and ended up getting married somewhere in the Outer Rim. Padmé offers that one day, once the fighting is over, she’d like to bring the gang together again.

…

From the deck of a Providence-class dreadnought named _The Negotiator_ , Jedi Master and Field Marshal Obi-Wan Kenobi, presides over the siege of Mandalore. As he watches Republic forces lead loyal Mandalorians into combat against the Separatists and their own legions of Mandalorians, General Anakin Skywalker, Jedi Knight, joins him with word from the High Council. Masters Kit Fisto and Luminara Unduli attacked the Pyke Syndicate and discovered that Sifo-Dyas was slain by Dooku about fifteen years ago, in cold-blood.

Obi-Wan asks if Anakin is certain of the credibility of the report, to which Anakin replies his old friend Caleb Dume confirmed it. Anakin believes this is all the proof they need — Dooku is the Sith overlord they’ve been searching for since Maul’s defeat. Obi-Wan is not convinced, but Anakin says the old man is losing his nerve. Obi-Wan snaps at him, saying he’s not convinced their fight is righteous anymore — and he’s not _that_ old.

Anakin responds by playing a recording from the Holonet. It’s a propaganda film put together by the Jedi Order that exposes Dooku as a Sith Lord and paints the Separatist Parliament as pawns under his spell. Anakin asks Obi-Wan how it’s possible they could be fighting in a war against a Sith Lord and not be righteous? Obi-Wan cannot win this fight so he drops it.

Captain Raymus Antilles enters to tell them that they are beginning their descent into atmosphere, and that they will be meeting with Duchess Staine Kryze within the hour. Obi-Wan acknowledges and Anakin looks concerned about his friend.

…

We return to Mace Windu who looks on in consternation as his Droid Army strips Kuat of it’s resources and process the local population. It is a full-on Republic assimilation. Mace is disgusted to see that what’s happening is no different than what they claim the Separatists do to the worlds they conquer.

The Master Jedi begins contacting the other Masters and Knights on front lines across the galaxy to see how their experiences compare to his own. Each comrade he speaks with tells a similar tale, but from different perspectives. It seems that no matter the outcome of the battle, the native populace is forced to suffer while the war effort rages on. The Jedi are helping to consolidate the resources of the known galaxy. But why? And for whom?

Mace’s final call is to Yoda, who shames him for not having seen this sooner, and for how long it’s been since last they communed. Mace asks if there is anything that can be done, or if it is too late? Yoda replies that it’s never too late to make a change for good. The galaxy needs champions, and the Jedi are the guardians of truth and justice, are they not? Mace intimates that he no longer knows, as he surveys the endless lines of miserable Kuat civilians waiting for assimilation.

…

Back on Coruscant to a gala raising money for Padmé’s campaign against Palpatine. Bail Organa causes a bit of an uproar when he walks up to the podium to announce that he will be suspending his campaign immediately and throwing all his support, and delegates, behind Padmé Amidala.

Padmé comes out to embrace Bail before giving her stump speech in which she claims to have the record, the experience and the poll numbers to win. After her speech and rubbing some elbows, she returns to an antechamber to discuss the rest of her schedule with her advisors. Sabé is there and she embraces Padmé, telling her that she knows she’s going to run a great campaign. Padmé thanks her and asks what she’ll do now that Bail is returning to his homeworld?

Sabé tells her that she accepted a position in Palpatine’s offices a few weeks ago, and is just happy she can finally get to work. Padmé does not look surprised, and adds that Sabé was always one step ahead of everyone. Sabé replies it’s all just a part of her training. Then she notices Janus in the crowd and excuses herself to go speak with Palpatine’s advisor.

…

On the ocean world of Manaan, Jango Fett and his son Boba Fett lead a legion of Rocket Troopers into Kam City — the transplanted cloning facilities run by Lama Su and the Kaminoans. Once inside, they begin a terror campaign, wiping out everyone and everything that isn’t a Clone. Jango purges all their data servers while Boba beheads the regal Lama Su. Then, while their troops set detonator charges in the reactor core, Jango and Boba get into a turbo lift that brings them to the deepest part of the facility.

On the way down Boba tells Jango about the stuff he’s been reading up on the ancient Mandalorians, and how different they are from the modern race. Jango reminds him that he’s not a Mandalorian, which Boba ignores. Boba says his point is that they wear armor specifically designed to resist Force-users. Their race was defined by their eternal defiance of anyone who would dare to wield such power.

Jango says he can’t believe someone who reads so much, can be so stupid. Boba says he can’t believe his father has betrayed everything his people stood for. Jango asks Boba the last time he needed something and couldn’t get it? How many other beings have a full set of Mandalorian Steel by their fifteenth birthday? Working for Tyranus has them living like royalty — Jango has no regrets.

The lift reaches the ground floor, and the doors swing open. The Fett’s shoot the first four people they see and then stop shooting when they realize no one is resisting. Jango tells the surviving Kaminoans that if they give him what he seeks, then he’ll disintegrate them out of mercy. When they ask what he’ll do if they refuse, he says they’ll still burn, but it’ll take much, much longer. Their leader asks what he seeks, to which he replies: A child — an infant who’s over a decade old.

…

On Mandalore, Obi-Wan Kenobi presides over a peace summit between the different factions of Mandalorians including Duchess Satine Kryze and the Separatist emissaries. Obi-Wan and the Duchess are committed to finding a peaceful resolution to the conflict and using Mandalore as an example to the rest of the galaxy. Anakin treats it as a waste of time and one night, when the negotiations are finished for the day, he shares his true feelings with Obi-Wan.

Anakin believes that the only solution for Mandalore is an extermination campaign. He wants to use the fleet to bombard known Separatist loyalists, and force the rest into hiding or off-world. Chasing the traitors from the system will ultimately save more lives and end the fighting swifter, which leaves more time for the survivors to rebuild and regrow.

This is when we meet Ahsoka Tano. She is Obi-Wan Kenobi’s new padawan learner and a powerful Togruta in her own right. She feels that Anakin’s plan has merit in theory, but cannot believe it is the Jedi way to wipe out one half of a world to save the other. Anakin asks Ahsoka if she’s ever been on a world infected by an incurable plague? To which Obi-Wan replies that Mandalore is not suffering from an infection.

Anakin is incredulous — in a time of war, disloyalty and insurrection are worse than and illness. How can civilization continue without order? Is that not the whole point of this war? Before Obi-Wan can argue, the palace is attacked by the Sith assassin Asajj Ventress. She manages to kill Satine and many other dignitaries before escaping.

Obi-Wan loses control at the loss of the Duchess, risking his life to chase Ventress down and corner her. As they square off she asks where the Chosen One is, claiming that Obi-Wan alone won’t be much of a challenge. He overpowers her and demands she tell him where she heard that prophecy between punches. Before she answers, Anakin and a squad of droid troops track them down and arrest her.

The attack and death of the Duchess makes the peace negotiations untenable. Battle resumes over Mandalore and Obi-Wan feels hopelessness set in. Then they get word that General Grievous is attacking Coruscant and has kidnapped the Chancellor. They must return to the capital, which upsets Ahsoka, who believes they are abandoning Mandalore.

Obi-Wan hands over Republic command to Raymus Antilles and then he, Anakin and Ahsoka steal a pair of Clone fighters to escape Mandalore and head back to Coruscant in secret.

…

The beleaguered Jedi Masters Roron Corobb, and Shaak Ti, fight in a desperate battle with General Grievous on the bridge of his command ship, the _Malevolence_. Grievous is using four lightsabers to hold off the powerful Jedi Masters. Eventually he strikes down Corobb and the Ithorian falls with a mighty cry from his massive lungs. Shaak Ti unleashes a devastating combination that drives Grievous back. As she levels her blade, Chancellor Palpatine activates a hidden red lightsaber in his hand and strikes her down.

Grievous is shamed, but Palpatine tells him there is no time for that. A team of Clone Troopers remove the fallen Jedi and cleaning droids mop up the blood. Then Palpatine sits in a chair and activates the restraints on his wrists. This time — he says to Grievous — you shall not fail me.

Then Anakin, Obi-Wan and Ahsoka drop out of hyperspace and into the midst of the largest space battle in the Trilogy. The Separatists are holding off three different Republic fleets and maintaining a consistent barrage of the capital below. They cannot escape the system without sustaining heavy casualties, so the kidnapping of the Chancellor is rapidly turning into a failure. The Jedi make for the _Malevolence_ and use their stolen vessel’s transponders to sneak past enemy lines and onto the hangar bay.

From there, the three Jedi fight their way to the bridge and confront Grievous. Grievous and a squad of elite troopers battle the Jedi to a near-standstill but with Obi-Wan unconscious and Ahsoka badly wounded, Anakin summons the power to disarm Grievous and incapacitate him. Then, under the taunting of Chancellor Palpatine ( — Dew It!) Anakin decapitates Grievous. Ahsoka cries out in horror at the murder of a prisoner, but the _Malevolence_ is in freefall so survival becomes the priority. By the time they reach the ground the now leaderless Separatist forces scatter from the system.

The Battle of Coruscant is over and the Republic celebrates their heroes, none more than Anakin Skywalker, the man who killed Grievous and saved the Chancellor. Palpatine throws a party to show how unflappable he is in the face of his possible death, and Anakin is the toast of the town. Padmé makes an appearance out of respect, but must leave so as to not ruin the fun for her political rival.

…

So Anakin and Sabé are afforded the opportunity to reconnect over drinks and revelry, which results in their sloppy, drunken love-making. In the morning Sabé laments her judgment, saying she thought she had grown out of this phase. Anakin asks why she thinks he’s a phase to her? She says she knows better than to play with another woman’s toys. He looks hurt by the insinuation, but says nothing more. She kisses his neck and admits she can’t help but be mean to him — it’s better than letting him break her heart.

He returns to the Temple, which offers us a glimpse at the severe damage the battle did to the city. So much of the high level architecture is in disrepair. Fires burnt through the night and are still sending plumes of smoke into the morning skies. It will be many cycles before the capital can fully recover.

Obi-Wan is there to meet with Anakin when he returns to the Temple. He tells him Ahsoka left the Order and the Council would like to see him. Anakin goes before the High Council which actually has all the living members present for the first time since the war’s inception. Then, Mace Windu steps down as Champion of the Order and the Council votes unanimously to name Anakin as their new Champion. He’s relieved that he’s not in trouble, as he expected, and pleased with the promotion.

Next, the Council discusses a change in tactics on the besieged worlds of Utapau, Manadlore and Kashyyk. Mace explains that after the local populations are secured and the Separatists are chased from their respective sectors, the Republic will return to atmosphere, offering supplies and aid as requested by the citizens. For too long, the Jedi have been acting as imperialists, and it ends now.

This declaration is met with much discord throughout the Council. Not every Jedi believes as Mace and Obi-Wan do, and Anakin makes it known he’s one of them. Tempers flare among the usually calm Councilors, so Anakin and Obi-Wan leave the meeting behind and share that they are disturbed by what they just witnessed — but for different reasons.

Anakin cannot believe that there are so many prominent Jedi who would doubt that spreading democracy to the galaxy is a good thing. Obi-Wan is upset by the outright warmongering that some of his closest friends and allies seem capable of.

Anakin says he needs to lighten up, not worry about the rules so much as the results. Obi-Wan is unamused, offering that Anakin’s lack of respect for boundaries could have disastrous consequences. Either way, Obi-Wan finishes, he’s got a bad feeling about all this. Anakin bids him farewell and MTFBW him on Mandalore.

…

Though the battle with the Separatists rages on, Dooku and his parliament remain in hiding, foiling the Jedi attempts to end the war. The Separatist tactics following their loss over Coruscant turn destructive and scattered. Clone regiments appear to be hitting random targets across the galaxy, non-military in many regards, and the Jedi have no way to counter it. The Clone Wars is becoming a battle of attrition.

But if there is one thing the public loves, no matter their political leanings or social climate — it’s a hero, Palpatine happily explains to Anakin over drinks. They stand on a balcony overlooking a park where a campaign event is wrapping up. There are images of the Supreme Chancellor and the Republic symbol everywhere, and banners proclaiming “The Hero of the Battle of Coruscant” would be making an appearance. Anakin says he doesn’t like accolades, but Palpatine reminds him of all the opportunities they entitle him to, and Anakin says he doesn’t like those either.

He asks Palpatine if he knows what’s happened with Sabé? He hasn’t seen her in months and she hasn’t been responding to his messages either. Palpatine says he admits he has too many employees to know where each of them are, but he certainly hopes wherever she is, she’s working hard to secure him an election victory at the end of the cycle. In the meanwhile, Palpatine adds, perhaps you might take this time to reconnect with Padmé?

Anakin chokes on his drink for a second, then offers sheepishly that he’d never fraternize with a political rival like that. Palpatine laughs at him. Anakin asks how he knew? — Knew that they’ve spent nearly every night together for the many months Anakin’s been on Coruscant? How could he not? Anakin would be surprised to learn all that the Chancellor knows.

Anakin begins to apologize but Palpatine won’t hear of it. He likes Padmé, he says he was once her mentor many years ago. And besides, he’s old enough to know better than to interfere with matters of the heart. Palpatine tilts his head and smiles, then wraps his arm around Anakin’s shoulders.

…

Jango and Boba Fett are leading a full regiment of rocket troopers into battle against a Republic invasion force on Ord Mantell. The battle takes place in the clouds around the platform cities of the smuggler’s haven. The Clone forces are deadly efficient and far superior to the droids so the Jedi commanders jump into the fray. Jango defeats the Jedi Knight by using overwhelming numbers and aid from his guards, while Boba defeats the Padawan in single combat.

At the end of the battle, Jango receives a message from Dooku, which gets Boba upset. The Clones begin to pack up their equipment and torch their facilities to abandon the sector. Jango says he will be awaiting them on his command ship, then looks to the sky where a Star Destroyer hangs in orbit.

Boba gets frustrated to hear his father is ready to abandon their outpost. If they weren’t going to stay on Ord Mantell, why did they just lose so many men defending it? Jango tells Boba to stop being stupid. He knows exactly what — or _who_ — they were defending, and it wasn’t this planet or the fortress. Boba ridicules him, saying his Force-master told him to leap, so he asked how high? Jango punches the taste out of his son’s mouth to end the argument.

Suddenly, Jango receives a hail on his holocommunicator. He tells Boba to shut up, then answers and is immediately dumbstruck. The holo-image is not of Dooku, but of a man hooded in black. Jango drops to his knees and averts his eyes. The Dark Lord’s visage makes Boba tremble and quake where he sits.

You have done well, master hunter, the Dark Lord says. His voice turns Boba’s stomach, but he’s too terrified to vomit. The war has been a success and galaxy will be eternally grateful. But Jango is no military commander, he is a hunter, and that’s what the dark lord needs right now. Jango thanks him for his favor and asks how he can serve? Lord Sidious gives him specific instructions then ends the transmission.

As soon as the call ends, Jango and Boba return to their senses and shake out the chills. Boba tells his father that this is a bad idea, but Jango is done discussing things with his son. He tells Boba that he doesn’t have to come with him, he’ll keep the reward and the glory for himself.

…

Stress is high on Coruscant at a time when the war is at its bloodiest, and the election is mere weeks away. While the Council meets to discuss reports that Obi-Wan Kenobi is returning to the capital to discuss a disturbing development on Mandalore, an explosion shakes the foundation of the Temple. The Sentinels quickly ascertain that someone snuck onto the premises disguised as a reconstruction worker to plant charges on the support beams above the catacombs. Only about one third of the explosives actually went off — had the entire payload erupted it might have leveled the entire structure. The Jedi are shocked and dismayed that this was even possible, not to mention how close they came to dying.

Chancellor Palpatine announces that he’s calling for a full investigation into the attack and vows publicly that he will not rest till this terrorist is exposed and brought to justice. The Council sees this as empty words and political posturing, but Anakin is inspired. Anakin is quick to accuse Jango Fett of the attack, because he was able to sneak onto the grounds and ambush him years ago. He contacts his friends in The Guild and sets them all to the task of tracking down Dooku and Jango Fett. The Guild is more than happy to oblige, as most of them see Anakin as their mentor and master after all these years of guidance and illumination.

That night, as he and Padmé prepare for bed, she asks him if he’s ever thought about re-marrying. Anakin is stunned and nearly laughs at her before going on about the Jedi Code and their rules about attachments. Then he realizes she’s being serious, so he recovers and asks what made her think of that? She looks a little off balance, saying that Anakin never talks about his wife, and she’d like to know about her.

Anakin says he doesn’t want to talk about painful things. Padmé says that some pain is good, it helps us heal, grow and learn. Anakin says whoever said that probably wasn’t talking about watching your wife and son die within the same cycle… Padmé is ashamed of herself, and tries to apologize but Anakin runs out of the room without a word. Padmé thinks she hurt him, but moments later Anakin and Jango Fett fall into the room, desperately fighting for purchase on his lightsaber.

Padmé calls for her guards, but they’re already dead. She goes for a stashed blaster she keeps in the nightstand, but Jango disarms her without letting go of Anakin. Eventually Jango is forced to blow a charge in his gauntlet to electrocute both Anakin and himself. The lightsaber goes flying out of their hands, but Jango manages to get Skywalker off of him. As he lines up his kill shot on the stunned Jedi, Padmé appears behind him and stabs the blue lightsaber blade through Jango’s heart.

Fett falls down dead at the feet of Padmé Amidala then she and Anakin embrace. His relief quickly turns to passionate, unbridled rage. The Champion of the Order returns to the Jedi Council to inform the Masters of Jango’s attempt on Padmé’s life. He demands that they send him against Dooku — he’s spent too long on Coruscant playing the hero. It’s time someone ended this war once and for all.

The more pacifist Masters are worried by this change in attitude, but without a Grandmaster they cannot deny the Champion. Then Obi-Wan enters the chamber and embraces Anakin. It’s been many months since the last time they saw each other and the time apart has aged Kenobi. He’s weary and the spark has gone out in his eyes. Anakin is troubled by the sight and it squelches his righteous fire.

Seeing that he has an opening, Mace offers that the Council will discuss and vote on a measure to send Anakin against Dooku, but first they must discuss the attack on the Temple. The Sentinels and the Senate investigators have both come to the same conclusion and it is the duty of the Champion to seek justice. Mace tells them that Yoda has been accused. Obi-Wan quickly says that the two of them must go to Dantooine and seek the truth of this.

It’s not until they are in hyperspace that Obi-Wan finally tells Anakin what’s on his mind. He believes that it is time for him to leave the Order, and this mission will be his last. Anakin is outraged, and blames it on Ahsoka and his love for Satine. Obi-Wan says that his feelings have nothing to do with it. Yoda has been his — no, the Galaxy’s — moral center for hundreds of years. He is a source of light in an otherwise bleak and dreary universe — If he must choose between his duty and morality, then he will choose Yoda. Everytime.

Anakin can’t begin to understand this, but Obi-Wan doesn’t expect him to. The rest of the trip to Dantooine is awkward, and things don’t get easier once they land. Yoda greets them with his lightsaber drawn. He is cagey and unfriendly to Anakin, which stresses Obi-Wan out. Anakin accuses Yoda of being a terrorist to which Yoda asks Anakin if he often acts out of fear? Obi-Wan tells them both to shut up, this isn’t what he came here for.

Anakin is vindicated, saying he’s been waiting for Obi-Wan to admit what this was all about. If he’s not going to arrest Yoda, why come all the way out here? Obi-Wan says it’s because they are the only two beings in the galaxy he trusts. With a heavy heart he reveals that there is a spy, or even a number of spies in the Order, even on the Council. Obi-Wan confronted a crazed Darth Maul on Mandalore and though he failed to capture him, he did manage to find out that Palpatine himself has been compromised by the Sith. Whoever Dooku’s overlord is, he’s pulling the strings of both sides of this conflict.

Yoda says that he agrees, adding that it may even be Palpatine himself. He tells them that Master Windu shares similar fears with them as well. If one looks at the totality of the Clone Wars, it’s hard to argue that any single person has gained more than the Chancellor. Anakin balks at this, saying that Dooku, Padmé and even he himself, have benefited socially and professionally since the war began. Obi-Wan and Yoda appear hesitant, but not Anakin.

Again, Anakin returns to the fact that they know Dooku is a known Sith Lord, how could fighting him be helping the Dark Side? This makes both Yoda and Obi-Wan turn dismissive. They tell Anakin to stop reciting propaganda, that he needs to see beyond his friendship with these politicians and socialites… Anakin is angry that they would treat him like he’s ignorant. More than just angry, he’s hurt that his friend, mentor and master would act as though he can’t think for himself.

Obi-Wan says he’s been insulated for too long, that for all his wisdom and power, Anakin still fails to see the immense privilege afforded the Chosen One. Obi-Wan and Yoda immediately recoil at the mention of the prophecy, which makes Anakin laugh at them. He calls them conspiracy nuts, that they’re just as mad as the fools on the Council, and that Obi-Wan knows him better than anyone… Nothing he says elicits a response from the masters — both fear the repercussions of what just was just uttered.

Unsure of himself for the first time in his life, Anakin returns to the shuttle and hyperspaces back to Coruscant alone. While travelling back to the capital, Anakin tries to call Sabé but receives no answer. Instead he reaches out to The Guild who try to help lift his spirits. He tells his followers that Jango died at his feet and that Dooku is next. The Guild informs him that they have more than one lead on Dooku’s whereabouts — he’s somewhere in the Core, on a secret diplomatic mission.

Anakin is considering this information as he drops out of hyperspace and immediately receives a transmission from the Chancellor’s office. It’s Janus, and he’s inviting Anakin to a dinner where he’ll be Chancellor Palpatine’s guest of honor. Anakin acknowledges and when he lands he’s taken into the grand hall of the Senate to watch an artistic performance by the Mon Calamari. The Chancellor welcomes him warmly and tells him to take a seat by his side and talk with him. Palpatine and he share a private box and some sparkling wine.

Palpatine says he is almost relieved to see Anakin return without Master Yoda. Anakin says he thought the Chancellor wanted to bring those responsible to justice? Palpatine nods and says he found it hard to believe that Yoda would be the culprit, and even if he was, what sort of justice would that be? Besides, don’t the Jedi need to be reminded of their mortality every now and then? If one of their own number feels it’s important to strike a little fear into their ranks, who is he to interfere as a layman?

The Supreme Chancellor of the Republic is hardly a layman, Anakin replies. But the war has taken more friends from Anakin than he cares to count, they hardly need a reminder. Palpatine apologizes if he sounded callous, but Anakin understood what he meant. He shares that he has his own doubts about the Order and its leadership. The Chancellor says that’s interesting, because from what he gathers, Anakin doesn’t seem to have any trouble inspiring loyalty or leading others. How many Force-users in the Outer Rim secretly call him master, even now?

Anakin is not surprised to hear that Palpatine has heard about The Guild. Was it Padmé or Sabé who spilled the beans? — Palpaltine’s lips are sealed. Anakin says he couldn’t abandon them, they all mean so much to him, almost like a family. The Jedi wouldn’t understand. Palpatine says he would have done the same thing, but perhaps in a more careful way. Anakin laughs and takes a big swig of his drink.

Eventually Anakin tells the Chancellor about Obi-Wan calling him the Chosen One. Then he goes on about how he’s heard rumors or whispers about some prophecy, but he’s never paid it any mind. It’s just a conspiracy used to inspire those who weren’t wise enough to understand the stakes of the Clone Wars. It’s laughable and pathetic — but the more he talks, the more he realizes that Palpatine knows something he’s not saying.

Palpatine tells him a little story about a certain Dark Lord of the Sith named Plagueis the Wise. The point is to illustrate that the Sith seek to supersede the laws of nature — while the Jedi tend to merely bend them as the need arises. That’s why the prophecy of the One who will bring balance is obviously a lie, because the Jedi need it to be true.

This sentiment is meant to surprise Anakin, but instead his instincts tell him to probe Palpatine’s mind with the Force — an otherwise unthinkable invasion. Anakin discovers that the Chancellor is, in fact, the overlord they’ve been looking for. Sidious — Anakin says rising from his seat. Palpatine stands to lead him out of the box into the back hall then, finally, he reveals his full presence. It’s enveloping and magnetic, like gravity is increasing exponentially, and the light seems to die around them.

It’s you, it’s been you from the beginning — Anakin draws his saber and points it at Palpatine’s throat. Yes, the dark lord revels in the moment. I’ve waited a long time to answer that question, my young apprentice. I will never join the Sith — Anakin shouts and lunges forward. The lightsaber blade deactivates with a hissing, whine before it do any harm.

Good, good, Sidious says and chuckles in delight. You have anger, you have hate, and you know exactly what to do with them — strike down your enemies when they present themselves. That is the way of the Force, the way the Jedi spend their whole lives trying to forget — the Force is the power to destroy, raw and infinite. There is no peace.

Anakin says he will tell the Council and they will decide his fate, but Sidious isn’t buying it. He continues that there is a reason he chose Anakin, there is a reason Qui-Gon couldn’t leave him behind, a reason the Jedi made him their Champion, and it’s why Padmé will keep the baby… Anakin is special, destined for fame. He was born to be greater than the Sith or the Jedi.

Anakin stops him and asks what baby he’s talking about?

Oh my dear sweet boy, she still hasn’t told you? What do you think I am celebrating tonight? The election is over. Padmé is pregnant with your child and she’s keeping it. With public perception turning against the war, a war she’s been calling for since the beginning — and now she’s with child out of wedlock — It is over for her politically.

That’s impossible, Anakin says, she would have told him.

Search your feelings Anakin, you know it to be true. Sidious laughs then asks him what he thinks the Council will do when they find out? Does the child of the Champion of the Order still grow up in the basement of that wretched Temple, or will he get special allowances? Anakin is having a breakdown. He cannot stand, but Sidious is not finished with him. The dark lord asks — what will he do when Mace and the Sentinels come to their apartment, arrest Padmé and take his son away forever?

At the mention of “his son” Anakin’s eyes lock with Palpatine’s and a silent, unacknowledged change comes over the young Jedi. He stands and leaves for the shuttle bay and hails R2-D2 on his wrist communicator, telling the droid to prep The Cloudrider. Then he takes a shuttle directly to Padmé’s apartments to confront her.

How could you lie to me, hide this from me? — Anakin begs of her. She doesn’t understand why he’s so upset. She tells him that their lives won’t have to change all that much, so long as he agrees to marry her. He says she must be joking. She’s not. She’s thought this through. He can leave the Order and they’ll get married after her coronation. They can announce the engagement and then the pregnancy within the last few days of the election. That’ll put her over the top with voters, and together they can rule the galaxy.

Anakin cannot believe his ears. Sounds like you’ve had this planned out for a while — Anakin says and won’t let her touch him. She tells him she loves him, but this is just how politicians do things. He’ll come to understand if he just trusts her. He says he thought he did trust her. He tells her he has something he must do to protect his child. Then he turns to go, but she tries to stop him and fails. He tells C-3PO to begin packing up Padmé’s belongings — she needs to leave the capital immediately. She says she’s not afraid of Palpatine, to which he replies that makes her a fool.

Then he leaves and flies to the Temple, and calls on Mace Windu as he’s meditating. He tells him that Palpatine is Sidious, he’s the Sith Lord they’ve been looking for this whole time. As Champion of the Order, he is going to bring him to justice, but needs his assistance. Mace is blinded by the fortuitous opportunity and agrees to join Anakin.

…

Darth Sidious returns to his office and dons his black robe, then pulls the cowl over his head before sending a message to Dooku. In it he quickly says that now is the time, then hangs up. Next he calls Janus and tells him the Galaxy is ready for the truth, and hangs up. Finally he calls a third party and says simply: Commander, execute Order-66.

Suddenly the entire Droid army of the Republic turns on their masters. In conflicts all across the galaxy, the Clone Troopers join the Droid legions as they hunt down the Jedi. The scene whips around the galaxy to show as all the masters and knights we’ve come to know are being wiped out by their own troops.

Kashyyk is bombarded by both Separatist and Republic fleets; Droids and Clones demolish the populace of Mandalore street by bloody street; Kit Fisto is struck down defending a bunker on Utapau; Aayla Secura gets shot more times than is necessary to kill any being…

And as the Jedi Masters approach the Senate building, a recording begins to play over the Holonet. Count Dooku announces that he and the Supreme Chancellor of the Republic have met in secret to bring an end to the war. In their discussions they quickly realized that both the Republic and the Separatists have been deceived. It was not they who were opposed to freedom, justice and peace, but the Jedi. They’ve been using the Droid and Clone armies as pawns in their sadistic quest to weaken the galaxy.

Dooku then says that he’s been empowered by his Parliament to end the fighting immediately, so long as the Jedi are never allowed to influence the fate of the Galaxy ever again. The recording ends, and then, after a few seconds of delay, a second recording begins to play. This time it is Palpatine speaking, telling a similar story about the nefarious Jedi plot and at then end agreeing to Dooku’s terms in principle.

However, Palpatine continues, the only way to ensure that the Jedi and their kind never return to power is to restructure their society. Therefore, the Republic and Confederacy will reorganize as one Empire, one single supremacy, founded upon a commitment to order, justice and peace. Dooku and Palpatine shall share the responsibilities of leadership until the Senate can appoint a single emperor from amongst their number. This holovid continues playing in the background as the Jedi Masters enter Palpatine’s office and declare him under arrest.

However, Mace and the Masters are no match for Sidious and his newest apprentice, Anakin Skywalker. As the battle nears a close, Lord Tyranus appears in time to strike down Mace Windu. With the betrayal complete, and his comrades dying around the galaxy, Mace becomes one with the Force by turning himself into a bomb of pure electric energy. It catches Anakin and Dooku off-guard, but Palpatine manages to defend them all from the terrific explosion. The effort he is forced to expend protecting them from the destruction leaves him scared and disfigured, but ultimately victorious.

With the Jedi defeated, Emperor Palpatine gives out marching orders. Tyranus is to go to the Temple and destroy everyone he finds there, leave no one alive or else the Jedi may return. He tells Anakin that he is sending him to a world known as Vadross. There he will find the secret to this prophecy and how he fits it. Anakin says he can be of use to his master in the fight against the Jedi, but Palpatine disagrees. He says Anakin is more useful to him if he turns his Guild to the Dark Side — for the Sith shall need inquisitors if they are to eradicate the false Jedi religion. Then, when he’s finished on Vadross, he must go to the Mustafar system and wipe out the Separatist Parliament.

A tremor in the Force occurs between Tyranus and Sidious, but the master will not be denied. He says the feeble Senate will share their same fate in time, but for now he has a greater use for Dooku’s powers. Together, they will restore the Sith Temple from the depths below Coruscant’s crust, and replace the Jedi one desecrating its grounds. Once more the Sith will rule the galaxy! Dooku and Anakin bow to their master who cackles menacingly.

…

Anakin and R2 fly off to Vadross and he uses the Force to guide him to a small settlement near the planet’s equator. It’s a barren world of deserts and stone, but the mining sustains what little civilization the system can attract. When he lands, there’s a little boy there to lead him through town. The boy calls himself Lor. Anakin thinks the child looks a little like him.

At the heart of the settlement is a meager chapel in severe disrepair. It was abandoned decades ago when a Force-cult was chased off the planet. The cult worshiped the Force-spirit of Revan, a legendary Jedi who turned to the Dark Side to doom the Galaxy and then returned to the Light to save it. Anakin’s mother could have been a true zealot, or just a dumb kid mixed up in the wrong crowd. Either way, she participated in some Spice-induced orgies and eventually gave birth to Anakin.

When local authorities got violent to remove the religious cult, apparently so did baby Anakin. As an infant he was able to kill and maim, burning down entire homes to defend himself and his mother from harm. Then he finds the end of his story and it makes him weep…

When his mother reached the point where she could not hide Anakin anymore, a Jedi Knight appeared to help mask Anakin’s abilities, then book her passage to far-off Tatooine. It was the most obscure system a 20-something year old Qui-Gon Jinn could think of.

As Anakin’s tears turn to fury, a firestorm whips up around him and consumes the village entirely. When he reopens his eyes, they are glowing yellow and red. The little boy Lor is the only one Anakin spares. He asks if he is the “Great Invader,” a sort of imposing evil spirit from the local religion. Anakin raises an eyebrow, then returns to his ship and tells R2 to take him to Mustafar so Lord Vader can fulfill his destiny.

…

Back on Coruscant, Dooku stands over a pile of dead Jedi, children included, having a crisis of conscience. Not over the slaughtered Jedi who were once his peers and mentors, no. His allies in the Separatist Parliament await a fate they did not earn, and do not deserve. Who is Anakin Skywalker to slaughter _his_ compatriots? He’s going to exterminate them like vermin, the beings who gave him such respect and renown when the rest of the galaxy would have ignored him…

The more he thinks about it, the more he can’t stop himself. He’s not sure why, but he must defy his master. Dooku calls for his shuttle and before he knows it, he’s on the _Silver Sailor,_ hailing his fleet and commanding them to converge on Mustafar. He doesn’t have a plan, he’s acting on instinct. The Force is guiding him, he believes. He must be there to stop Anakin. Perhaps they can work together and overthrow Sidious? It’s unclear, doubts cloud his mind; he’s lost the focus that guided him for so long.

As Dooku and his fleet enter hyperspace, Obi-Wan and Yoda drop out of it and make for the atmosphere of Coruscant. The moment they are in range, the Temple sends them a message demanding they report to the Council. They know it’s a trap and have come to spring it so no other Jedi would be ensnared. They attack the Droids holding the Temple, retrieve the Great Holocron and change the recording to warn all Jedi against ever returning.

As they leave they’re feeling terrible about all the pain and destruction they’ve survived and consider a suicide attack on Palpatine’s offices, but then they’re hailed by a panicking Padmé. She tells them that she thinks Palpatine has done something to Anakin. She has a way of tracking him, if they’ll promise to take her with them. Obi-Wan says it’s impossible to track Anakin’s ship, to which she replies that’s what R2 is for.

So the three of them take off from Coruscant and hyperspace to Mustafar. Moments later, Palpatine and a detachment of his guards board a shuttle and take off for hyperspace as well.

…

Dooku is the first to the system but only by a small margin. He and his fleet prepare for Anakin, unsure of what’s to come, but still daring to hope for a peaceful resolution. When he arrives, he’s not alone. The Guild converges on the Separatist fleet and make short work of Dooku’s forces. An entire squadron of Force-users, under the command of Lord Vader, chase the Clone Troopers down into the volcanoes of Mustafar. Dooku lands and tries to fend off the younger Sith lord, but he’s far too powerful since his return from Vadross. Lord Vader strikes both of Dooku’s hands from his wrists, then leaves him to writhe in pain as Padmé’s personal vessel lands beside his.

Anakin goes to greet Padmé but is disappointed to see Yoda and Obi-Wan are with her. He’s shaken and afraid of them, unsure he’s ready for the battle to come and Padmé’s tears aren’t helping. He says that everyone has been lying to him his whole life, he can’t trust them or the Jedi. Palpatine is the only person in the galaxy who hasn’t let him down. Padmé says she never lied to him. Obi-Wan adds that the Dark Side has corrupted him, but not completely, he can turn away from his hatred. We’re brothers, Anakin, nothing can change that.

When Anakin looks ready to drop his lightsaber, an agony-fueled Tyranus appears and unleashes a blast of Dark energy that lifts Padmé from her feet and slams her into the wing of the ship behind her. She rag-dolls and is dead before she hits the ground. No! — Anakin cries, but too late. A hurricane of energy pours through Anakin, who rips Dooku’s throat out with the flick of his wrist. Then he pulls the dead lord’s saber into his open palm, activates both blades in his hands, and attacks Yoda and Obi-Wan Kenobi.

His rage makes him impossible to mark, and the Jedi Masters are pushed to the limits of their abilities immediately. But for all his skill, speed and power, Obi-Wan and Yoda have chemistry from decades of communion and practice. It’s an advantage that they must lean upon heavily once Darth Sidious drops out of the atmosphere to join the melee. He strikes the ground like a bolt of lightning and the battle pauses to recognize the new Emperor of the Sith.

He bows to Yoda and says he’s waited a lifetime for this. Then, Sidious activates both of his crimson blades, crosses them, and leaps into battle with Yoda and Obi-Wan. Anakin doesn’t want to be left behind, but his master is so fast it’s hard to help.

The Sith batter the Jedi backward, but never seem to gain any purchase. Finally, Sidious demands they split up, to rid the Jedi of their only advantage. Anakin obliges, pulling Obi-Wan toward the river of lava, while Palpatine and Yoda climb the volcano’s craggy face.

Palpatine says he always regarded Yoda as the Force incarnate, but now he’s wiser. He knows that his apprentice is, and his bloodline will replace them all in time. Yoda tells him that his faith is misplaced, in the Dark Side and in the doomed line of Skywalker. Palpatine counters Yoda saying that the Jedi cannot defeat the Sith through conflict. The very nature of the Force has been irreversibly changed. To prove it, Palpatine disarms himself and taunts the Jedi.

Yoda can strike him down and end the conflict here and now, but a warning in the old Master’s heart tells him that Obi-Wan is in mortal peril — Palpatine tells him, he must choose.

…

Obi-Wan and Anakin are trapped on a hover-skiff that flowed too far down the river and now hangs over the edge of a lavafall. They battle with their blades in one hand, while their other hand activates enough Force to hold up thier side of the boat. It’s just a matter of time — Anakin says and a tear traces down his cheek. He’s actually kind of glad that in the end, he’s going out with Obi-Wan. Obi-Wan holds him back and says that’s the difference between the Jedi and the Sith — A Jedi never gives up hope.

The skiff gives out below them and they drop toward the lava below. Anakin is accepting. He watches, confused to see Obi-Wan suspended in air above him while he falls. Yoda stands at the side of the lavafall, his hand outstretched and his brow furrowed. Anakin and Obi-Wan realize what’s happening in the same moment, meet eyes, and a lifetime of regret passes between them.

The pain of utter, unimaginable loss and betrayal in the final instant of his life, sustains Darth Vader as he’s tossed by the roiling pool of lava and thrown to shore. Palpatine retrieves him and tries to ease his suffering, but healing with the Force is a Jedi trait. He has Anakin encased in carbonite and returned to his lab on Coruscant.

Obi-Wan Kenobi weeps the whole way back to Padmé’s ship. It’s not till they’ve left atmosphere that he even realizes that he holds Anakin’s lightsaber in his left hand. He cries into the blade hilt as C-3PO tends to Padmé’s remains in the background.

…

Palpatine takes up his new throne and blames the death of Dooku and the Separatist Parliament on Yoda, Obi-Wan and the last of the Jedi. The Clones lay the foundation for the Stormtrooper corps, the Guild become Sith Inquisitors. He discusses with Janus that “the child” was lost with the deaths of Jango and Dooku, but they will find it, eventually. For now they must focus on developing their new super-weapon…

Padmé is returned to Naboo and given a hero’s burial. She is declared the first Hero of the Empire. All of Amidala’s handmaidens who survived the war, save a couple, reunite for the funeral.

As they bury Padmé we see that the lab from which Palpatine works his Sith Alchemy is the temple beneath Coruscant he wished to return to the surface. While he works on Lord Vader’s new body, he explains how his power will fuse with the robotics and give him strength. Vader asks how this is possible, so Palpatine shows him the assortment of holocrons he has collected. The Jedi never truly understood a simple truth of the galaxy — knowledge is power. The Force fills the room and Palpatine’s laugh morphs into the heavy, tell-tale breaths of Darth Vader’s respirator.

…

Obi-Wan is inconsolable but Yoda refuses to leave his side. They are drifting through deep space on _The Shatterpoint II_ without a plan. Obi-Wan wants to die attacking Coruscant — Yoda thinks they need to find an inhospitable world and go try live on it. Obi-Wan admits through tears that he lied to Anakin — he’s no Jedi because he can’t see any way to hope.

Then C-3PO interrupts to say that they are receiving a message from a Bail Organa, if that name means anything to them. They dock with the _Tantive IV_ and Bail greets the Jedi with a baby boy in his arms. Obi-Wan cannot believe his eyes. What is this? What’s going on? Who are you and who is the baby?

This is little Luke — Bail tells him — Luke Skywalker. Yoda grins, and Obi-Wan’s heart opens in a way he didn’t think possible. Luke’s mother and sister are safe with the Organa’s — Bail swears — but someone will have to watch over the boy. The twin children of Anakin Skywalker growing up on one world is courting disaster, and though Alderaan is good place to raise a princess, not so much a knight. Yoda agrees, saying better to bring young Luke to a world Vader would never dare return to.

Obi-Wan knows just the place, and adds he knows someone who’ll be happy help him. As Obi-Wan cradles the baby in his arms, Yoda says — Just like that, the Force provides the galaxy with a new hope.

Next we see the palace of House Organa on Alderaan, and a sad Sabé sitting with baby Leia in her lap. In the shadows we see that Anakin’s old friend Teela survived Order-66 and is watching over his daughter.

Finally we see as Obi-Wan returns to the village outside Mos Espa where he first met the Skywalkers. He tracks down a young, fairly successful farmer named Owen Lars, and asks to meet his wife. In the homestead we see that she is Berilé, who goes by Beru now. When she left Amidala’s service she returned to the cantina where she once had the most fun night of her life, met a good man and settled down.

She looks down at little Luke and cries out that he looks like baby Anakin! She takes him and swears to never let him go. Obi-Wan says the boy will need to be protected, but Owen and Beru look like they’re up to the task. He leaves them behind as the twin suns of Tatooine set in the background.

_In the final epilogue…_

Obi-Wan Kenobi is older now, his hair is gray and travels like one of the native Tusken Raiders. He climbs a ridge, then lays down flat to pull out his rifle and line up a shot. After a few seconds he shakes his head, then rises to his feet. He disrobes to only his shirt and trousers, drops his weapons and retrieves his lightsaber. He exhales, activates the blade, then jumps down to the ground below.

When he lands, he immediately engages a crazed and dehydrated Darth Maul in combat. Maul is in pain and his metallic legs whine and creak as he tries to defend himself. Obi-Wan bests him and strikes him down. As Maul dies, Obi-Wan stoops to hold his old foe. Maul asks if the boy will avenge them, if he’s the chosen one to fulfill the prophecy.

No — Obi-Wan tells Maul, he’ll be better. Better than all of us ever were. That is my hope — he says. Maul smiles at that last bit. “…Hope” Maul repeats, then the light goes out in his eyes, and Obi-Wan Kenobi closes them forever.

The End

and May the Force Be With You Always


End file.
